Grimaldi stuns local ferry operators
Coastal shipping sources consider the decision of Italy’s Grimaldi group to add two more ships to the Greece-Italy line as a "declaration of war."
On Friday the Italian group announced it was doubling the number of ferries on the Adriatic route, with two of them sailing from Ancona to Patra and the other two from Ancona to Igoumenitsa.
The Grimaldi move is clearly aimed at further increasing its share in this market, which Greek ferry operators used to dominate. Today they control no more than 40% of it.
The pandemic has not affected this route much, as it saw vehicle traffic fall 8% in 2020, while traffic on Greece’s domestic routes fell 36%.
