 | |
| Company type | Società per azioni |
|---|---|
| Industry | Transport |
| Founded | 1992 |
Area served | Mediterranean Sea |
| Parent | MSC Group |
| Website | www |
Grandi Navi Veloci (GNV) is an Italian shipping company, based in Genoa, that operates ferries between mainland Italy, Sicily, Sardinia, France, Spain, Albania, Morocco and Tunisia. It was established by Aldo Grimaldi in 1992.
GNV was created in 1992 by Aldo Grimaldi, initially as a subsidiary of Grimaldi Group. The first ship of the company, Majestic, entered service in 1993 on the Genoa-Palermo route, followed in 1994 by the sistership Splendid on the Genoa-Porto Torres route. Majestic and Splendid were the first cruiseferries ever operated by an Italian company.
The fleet was enlarged with new cruise ferries through the 1990s, and in 2000 the company went public. New routes were added, including Livorno-Palermo, Genoa-Olbia and Genoa-Barcelona. In 2002 and 2003 the new, large cruise ferries La Superba and La Suprema entered service. Lines for Tunisia, as well a new Civitavecchia-Palermo line, were opened.
In 2008 the fleet was enlarged with three ro-ro cargo ships, Audacia, Tenacia, and Coraggio, and a new Genoa-Barcelona-Tangier line was opened. In 2009, GNV became fully independent from the Grimaldi family and Grimaldi Group. In 2010 the company was acquired by the MSC Group; in the same year, GNV merged with SNAV, also a subsidiary of MSC. In 2012, following the ceasing of the services by Comarit and Comanav, GNV opened new lines between Sète, Tangier and Nador. In 2015, GNV opened a new line between Italy and Albania.
The company, As of 2018 [update] , currently operates a fleet of thirteen cruise ferries, including some of the largest ferries in Europe. Its CEO is Matteo Catani.
Grandi Navi Veloci converted one of their ferries, Splendid , into a hospital ship in order to treat coronavirus patients. [1] The ship was delivered to Liguria, Italy, on 23 March 2020, and was made available for the symbolic cost of 1 EUR. [2] [3] With help from Registro Italiano Navale and a number of local and national companies, many of which donated their time, materials, and expertise, Splendid was converted into a hospital ship in roughly 10 days. [3] [4] [5] Docked at Genoa's Ponte Colombo, the hospital ship is currently treating only coronavirus patients without serious pathologies, such as patients recovering after having been previously intubated. [6] [7] [8]
| Ship | Flag | Built | Entered service | Route | Gross tonnage | Length | Width | Passengers | Vehicles | Knots | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Splendid |  | 1994 | 1994 | Genoa-Rades | 39,139 GT | 214.5 m | 27.6 m | 2,200 | 1,010 | 21 |  |
| Fantastic | | 1996 | 1996 | Genoa-Barcelona-Tanger | 35,222 GT | 188.2 m | 27.6 m | 2,033 | 760 | 21 |  |
| Excellent | | 1998 | 1998 | Genoa-Barcelona-Tanger | 39,777 GT | 202.2 m | 28 m | 2,230 | 760 | 24 |  |
| La Suprema | | 2003 | 2003 | Genoa-Palermo | 49,257 GT | 211.5 m | 30.4 m | 2,920 | 984 | 28 |  |
| GNV Azzurra | | 1981 | 2013 | Naples-Marseille | 29,706 GT | 168.5 m | 24.5 m | 2,180 | 570 | 17 |  |
| GNV Atlas | | 1990 | 2013 | Sete-Barcelona-Nador | 33,336 GT | 161.3 m | 29 m | 2,000 | 575 | 18 |  |
| GNV Blu | | 1989 | 2017 | Bari-Durrës | 31,910 GT | 164.4 m | 27.6 m | 1,320 | 455 | 19.5 |  |
| Tenacia | | 2008 | 2020 | Valencia-Palma De Mallorca | 26,005 GT | 199 m | 26.6 m | 500 | 600 | 24 |  |
| Forza | | 2010 | 2020 | Civitavecchia-Termini | 25,530 GT | 199 m | 26.6 m | 500 | 600 | 24 |  |
| GNV Antares | | 1987 | 2021 | Napoli-Palermo | 31,598 GT | 179.4 m | 25.4 m | 888 | 850 | 18 |  |
| GNV Sealand | | 2009 | 2021 | Ibiza-Barcelona-Palma De Mallorca | 26,904 GT | 186.5 m | 25.6 m | 830 | 200 | 24 |  |
| GNV Bridge | | 2021 | 2021 | Barcelona-Palma De Mallorca-Valencia | 32,581 GT | 203.3 m | 25 m | 1,000 | 240 | 24 |  |
| GNV Spirit | | 2001 | 2022 | Naples-Palermo | 32,728 GT | 203.9 m | 25 m | 1,595 | 712 | 28 |  |
| Golden Bridge |  | 1990 | 2021 | Ibiza-Barcelona-Mahon | 26,463 GT | 186.5 m | 24.8 m | 1,500 | 500 | 23.5 |  |
| GNV Sirio | | 2004 | 2024 | Genoa-Palermo | 39,798 GT | 214 m | 26.4 m | 2,908 | 1,080 | 27.5 | |
| GNV Auriga | | 2005 | 2024 | Genoa-Palermo | 39,798 GT | 214 m | 26.4 m | 2,908 | 1,080 | 27.5 |
| Ship | Flag | Built | Entered service | Route | Gross tonnage | Length | Width | Passengers | Vehicles | Knots | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Majestic | | 1993 | 1993 | Laid up in Marseille | 32,777 GT | 188.2 m | 27.6 m | 1,790 | 760 | 21 |  |
| Excelsior | | 1999 | 1999 | Laid up in Genoa | 39,777 GT | 202.2 m | 28 m | 2,253 | 760 | 24 |  |
| GNV Cristal | | 1989 | 2013 | Laid up in Napoli | 33,336 GT | 161.3 m | 29 m | 2,000 | 575 | 18 |  |
| Rhapsody | | 1996 | 2015 | Laid up in Marseille | 37,768 GT | 161.8 m | 38.8 m | 2,448 | 716 | 23.5 |  |
| GNV Allegra | | 1987 | 2019 | Laid up in Rijeka | 31,914 GT | 166.3 m | 28.4 m | 1,458 | 580 | 21.5 |  |
| Ship | Flag | Built | Will Enter Service | Gross tonnage | Length | Width | Passengers | Vehicles | Knots |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GNV Polaris | | 2024 | 2024 | 47,089 GT | 218 m | 29.6 m | 1,500 | 1,360 | 25 |
| GNV Orion | | 2025 | 2025 | 47,089 GT | 218 m | 29.6 m | 1,500 | 1,360 | 25 |
| GNV Virgo | | 2026 | 2026 | 47,089 GT | 218 m | 29.6 m | 1,500 | 1,360 | 25 |
| GNV Aurora | | 2026 | 2026 | 47,089 GT | 218 m | 29.6 m | 1,500 | 1,360 | 25 |
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The Port of Barcelona is a major port in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Its 7.86 km2 (3 sq mi) are divided into three zones: Port Vell, the commercial/industrial port, and the logistics port. The port is managed by the Port Authority of Barcelona, itself owned by the state-owned Ports of the State.
MS GNV Allegra is a cruiseferry owned by MSC. The ship was built by Wärtsilä Marine's Perno shipyard in Turku, Finland for Jahre Line as MS Kronprins Harald. In 1991 she passed under ownership of Color Line, for whom she sailed until sold to Irish Ferries in 2007. She was sold by Irish Ferries to Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) in 2019 and renamed GNV Allegra for service in the fleet of MSC subsidiary Grandi Navi Veloci.
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Minoan Lines is one of the largest passenger ferry companies in Europe, and one of the dominant passenger ferry companies in Greece, sailing between Piraeus and Crete and, in the Adriatic Sea, between Patras and various Italian ports. The company was founded in May 1972. Since 2008 Grimaldi's Compagnia di Navigazione SpA owns and controls 95.9 of the stock of Minoan Lines.
Trasmediterránea operates passengers and cargo ferries between mainland Spain and the Canary Islands, the Balearic Islands, and northern Africa's Spanish territories. Since 2017 the majority of the company belongs to Naviera Armas.
Tirrenia is a privately-owned Italian shipping company contracted by the Ministry of Transportation to run ferry services between Italy's mainland and its major islands. It currently operates a fleet of seven vessels.
Moby Lines is an Italian shipping company that operates ferries and cruiseferries between the Italian or French mainland and the islands of Elba, Sardinia and Corsica. The company was founded in 1959 under the name Navigazione Arcipelago Maddalenino.
MS GNV Cristal is a cruiseferry owned by the Italy-based SNAV and operated by their Grandi Navi Veloci brand. She was built in 1989 by Schichau Seebeckwerft in Bremerhaven, West Germany as MS Olau Hollandia for Olau Line. From 1994 to 2005 she sailed as MS Pride of Le Havre for P&O Ferries. From 2005 to 2017 she operated as the SNAV Sardegna between Civitavecchia, Palermo and Olbia.
The Grimaldi Group is a private shipping company owned by the Grimaldi family and based in Naples, Italy. Grimaldi operates a large fleet of ro-ro, ro-ro/multipurpose, con-ro multipurpose, PCTC, ro-pax and cruise ferries vessels.
MS GNV Antares, originally the MS Norsun and then MS Pride of Bruges, is a ship operated by Grandi Navi Veloci.
GNV Blu is a roll-on/roll-off ferry currently operated by Grandi Navi Veloci. She used to be owned by Stena Line and operated on the Karlskrona–Gdynia service. She was built in 1986 by Van der Giessen de Noord as MS Koningin Beatrix for SMZ. In 1989 she passed under Stena Line's ownership and in 2002 was renamed Stena Baltica. In 2013 she was sold to SNAV. On 23 October 2014, SNAV leased the ship to Panamanian company Ferry Xpress Panama to start operations on the Colon – Cartagena – Colon and Colon – Bocas del Toro – Colon routes. Since 2015 the vessel is operated by Trasmediterránea, and is currently used by Grandi Navi Veloci to serve the Bari–Durrës route.
GNV Spirit is a cruiseferry owned by GNV and operated by GNV between Tyrrhenian Sea & Spain. She was acquired in 2022 by Grandi Navi Veloci from Brittany Ferries for an undisclosed amount.
MS La Superba is a cruiseferry owned and operated by the Italian ferry company Grandi Navi Veloci. It was built at Nuovi Cantieri Apuania in Marina di Carrara, Italy. When it entered service, La Superba was the largest passenger ferry operating in the Mediterranean, and one of the largest in the world; joined in the following year by the sistership La Suprema, it was surpassed in 2008 by Cruise Roma of Grimaldi Ferries. Its building costed about 120 million dollars.
MS La Suprema is a cruiseferry owned and operated by the Italian ferry company Grandi Navi Veloci. It was built at Nuovi Cantieri Apuania in Marina di Carrara, Italy. The second of a two-ship class, La Suprema and her sistership La Superba were the largest passenger ferries of the Mediterranean at the time of their completion; they were surpassed in 2008 by Cruise Roma of Grimaldi Ferries. Its construction cost about 120 million dollars.
MS GNV Auriga is a cruiseferry owned and operated by Grandi Navi Veloci. It was built in Fincantieri in Castellammare di Stabia, Italy.
MS GNV Sirio is a cruiseferry owned and operated by Grandi Navi Veloci. It was built in 2004 as Nuraghes by Fincantieri at Castellammare di Stabia, Italy. In 2023, it was transferred to Moby Lines and renamed Moby Vinci. The ship reverted to Grandi Navi Veloci in 2024, taking the name GNV Sirio.
In connection with the COVID-19 pandemic, navies from several countries deployed hospital ships to combat the disease. Aside from providing health services, hospital ships would allow civilian hospitals to offload some of the patients, relieving the pressure on facilities ashore. However, this also means that each ship would battle the onboard outbreaks of their own
MS Zeus Palace is an Italian ferry, which is operated by Grimaldi Lines.
MS Rhapsody, is an Italian cruiseferry operated by Grandi Navi Veloci. She was built at Chantiers de l'Atlantique in Saint-Nazaire, France for the French ferry operator SNCM as Napoleon Bonaparte. In 1996, she was put on the Marseille–Corsica route, replacing the old ferry Napoleon which was moved to the Marseille–Algeria–Tunisia route. On October 27, 2012, the ship broke its moorings in the port of Marseille due to strong winds, violently struck the dock, and sunk in the harbour. Due to its financial difficulties, SNCM was unable to repair the ferry, and sold it to the Italian shipowner MSC in 2014. Refloated, the ship was renamed Rhapsody and transferred to Grandi Navi Veloci to sail first between Italy and Albania, and then from 2017 on the Genoa-Porto Torres route.