Grandi Navi Veloci

Grandi Navi Veloci S.p.A.

Company type	Società per azioni
Industry	Transport
Founded	1992
Area served	Mediterranean Sea
Parent	MSC Group
Website	www.gnv.it/en

SNAV Sardegna in Sète

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.

History

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.

Coronavirus pandemic

Splendid in 2007.

Grandi Navi Veloci converted one of their ferries, Splendid  [ it ], 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]}

Fleet

Current fleet

Ship	Flag	Built	Entered service	Gross tonnage	Length	Width	Passengers	Vehicles	Knots	Image
Majestic		1993		32,777  GT	188.2 m	27.6 m	1,790	760	21
Splendid		1994		39,139  GT	214.5 m		2,200	1,010	21
Fantastic		1996		35,222  GT	188.2 m		2,033	760	21
Excellent		1998		39,777  GT	202.2 m	28 m	2,230	760	24
Excelsior		1999		39,777  GT	202.2 m		2,253	760	24
La Suprema		2003		49,257  GT	211.5 m	30.4 m	2,920	984	28
GNV Azzurra		1981	2013	29,706  GT	168.5 m	24.5 m	2,180	570	17
GNV Cristal		1989		33,336  GT	161.3 m	29 m	2,000	575	18
GNV Atlas		1990					2,000	575	18
Rhapsody		1996	2015	37,768  GT	161.8 m	38.8 m	2,448	716	23.5
GNV Blu		1989	2017	31,910  GT	164.4 m	27.6 m	1,320	455	19.5
GNV Allegra		1987	2019	31,914  GT	166.3 m	28.4 m	1,458	580	21.5
Tenacia		2008	2020	26,005  GT	199 m	26.6 m	500	600	24
Forza		2010	2020	25,530  GT	199 m				24
GNV Antares		1987	2021	31,598  GT	179.4 m	25.4 m	888	850	18
GNV Sealand		2009		26,904  GT	186.5 m	25.6 m	830	200	24
GNV Bridge		2021		32,581  GT	203.3 m	25 m	1,000	240	24
GNV Spirit		2001	2022	32,728  GT			1,595	712	28
Golden Bridge		1990	2021	26,463  GT	186.5 m	24.8 m	1,500	500	23.5
GNV Sirio		2004	2024	39,798  GT	214 m	26.4 m	2,908	1,080	27.5
GNV Auriga		2005					2,908	1,080	27.5
GNV Polaris		2024		47,089  GT	218 m	29.6 m	1,500	1,360	25

Future Ships

Ship	Flag	Built	Will Enter Service	Gross tonnage	Length	Width	Passengers	Vehicles	Knots
GNV Orion		2025	2025	52,000  GT	218 m	29.6 m	1,785	1,360	25
GNV Virgo		2026	2026	52,000  GT	218 m	29.6 m	1,785	1,360	25
GNV Aurora		2026	2026	52,000  GT	218 m	29.6 m	1,785	1,360	25

Accidents and incidents

• On 31 October 2018, a 8:00am local time, the Excellent crashed into the Port of Barcelona (ESBCN) after a gust of wind drove it into the cargo pier, smashing into a gantry crane, which tipped over onto containers holding flammable chemicals, which caught fire, causing toxic smoke, and setting the pier ablaze. The Excellent had been trying to dock, but was prevented from doing so due to bad weather. ^{[9] [10] [11]}

References

1. "MSC GROUP'S GRANDI NAVI VELOCI (GNV) CONVERTS FERRY INTO FLOATING HOSPITAL FOR CORONAVIRUS RELIEF IN GENOA, ITALY". www.msccruisesusa.com. 25 March 2020. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
2. "Da traghetto a nave ospedale: la nuova avventura della Gnv Splendid". GNV Nave Ospedale.
3. "Splendid case study — how the first passenger ship was transformed for coronavirus relief". seatrade-cruise.com. March 20, 2020.
4. "How GNV converted a ferry to a floating hospital". Riviera.
5. "Turismo & Attualità - GNV Splendid trasfomata in nave ospedale". www.advtraining.it.
6. "SPLENDID Current position (Passenger/Ro-Ro Cargo Ship, IMO 9015747) - VesselFinder". www.vesselfinder.com.
7. "Il medico a bordo della nave-ospedale: "Ne servono altre per isolare i pazienti"". La Voce di Genova. May 6, 2020.
8. "Grandi Navi Veloci converts ferry into floating hospital". CruiseandFerry.net.
9. "Barcelona port: Fire as ferry crashes into crane". BBC News. 31 October 2018.
10. "Wind Gusts Influenced the Ferry Crash in the Port of Barcelona". Maritime Herald. El Periodico. 1 November 2018.
11. Emrys Thakkar (31 October 2018). "Passenger Vessel Strikes Crane at Popular Cruise Port in Europe". Cruise Hive.

External links

• Company website