Philippe Holthof met with Grimaldi Group’s Emanuele Grimaldi to discuss the Neapolitan group’s $1.3 billion investment in nine methanol multi-fuel ro-pax ferries for its Grimaldi Lines, Finnlines and Minoan Lines subsidiaries The Grimaldi Group did something that none of its peers had ever done before in April 2025: it ordered nine ro-pax ferries at once. Over the past five years alone, the Naples-headquartered shipowner and operator of both deep-sea and shortsea ro-ro tonnage – led by the brothers Gianluca and Emanuele Grimaldi, together with their brother-in-law Diego Pacella – has invested billions of euros in a further fleet renewal with 14 hybrid mega short-sea ro-ro ferries and two hybrid Superstar-class ro-pax ferries delivered since late 2020. The company has also continued to renew its deep-sea fleet, thereby significantly reducing its emissions footprint per transported unit. Recently, two new car and truck carriers were introduced and 15 more are under construction at two different shipyards in China. With nine new methanol dual-fuel ro-pax ferries added to the newbuild tally, the Grimaldi Group is sparing no effort on its steep pathway to net-zero emissions. Emanuele Grimaldi stands at the helm of the group’s shortsea division and is preparing the third generation of the family to follow in the footsteps of their fathers and uncle. However, the 69-year-old – who is currently in his second and final term as chair of the International Chamber of Shipping – is nowhere near contemplating retirement. In fact, quite the contrary, he remains passionate about the industry. Grimaldi explains that the project for the group’s next generation of Mediterranean ro-pax ferries – four of which will operate for the Grimaldi Lines brand and two in the Minoan Lines fleet – started three years ago. The project to construct the three Hansa Superstarclass ro-pax ferries – earmarked to replace the three Fincantieri-built Star-class ro-pax ferries operating on Finnlines’ daily Helsinki-Travemünde route – started in parallel. The Hansa Superstars represent a different platform and are a ‘lessons learned’ variation of the Superstar-class ro-pax ferries Finnsirius and Finncanopus, introduced on Finnlines’ Naantali-Långnäs (Åland)- Kapellskär route in September 2023 and February 2024, respectively. With capacity for 5,190 trailer lane metres and 1,100 passengers, 1,008 of whom can “ The nine newbuilds represent a major step forwards for all three of our companies” FEATURED INTERVIEW Investing in a greener future 80
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NzQ1NTk=