Grandi Navi Veloci

Grandi Navi Veloci S.p.A.
Company typeSocietà per azioni
IndustryTransport
Founded1992
Area served
Mediterranean Sea
ParentMSC Group
Websitewww.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

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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, currently operates a fleet of thirteen cruise ferries, including some of the largest ferries in Europe. Its CEO is Matteo Catani.

Coronavirus pandemic

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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

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Current fleet

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Ship Flag Built Entered service Route Gross tonnage Length Width Passengers Vehicles Knots Image
Splendid Italy 1994 1994 Genoa-Rades 39,139 GT 214.5 m 27.6 m 2,200 1,010 21
Fantastic Italy 1996 1996 Genoa-Barcelona-Tanger 35,222 GT 188.2 m 27.6 m 2,033 760 21
Excellent Italy 1998 1998 Genoa-Barcelona-Tanger 39,777 GT 202.2 m 28 m 2,230 760 24
La Suprema Italy 2003 2003 Genoa-Palermo 49,257 GT 211.5 m 30.4 m 2,920 984 28
GNV Azzurra Italy 1981 2013 Naples-Marseille 29,706 GT 168.5 m 24.5 m 2,180 570 17
GNV Atlas Italy 1990 2013 Sete-Barcelona-Nador 33,336 GT 161.3 m 29 m 2,000 575 18
GNV Blu Italy 1989 2017 Bari-Durrës 31,910 GT 164.4 m 27.6 m 1,320 455 19.5
Tenacia Italy 2008 2020 Valencia-Palma De Mallorca 26,005 GT 199 m 26.6 m 500 600 24
Forza Italy 2010 2020 Civitavecchia-Termini 25,530 GT 199 m 26.6 m 500 600 24
GNV Antares Italy 1987 2021 Napoli-Palermo 31,598 GT 179.4 m 25.4 m 888 850 18
GNV Sealand Italy 2009 2021 Ibiza-Barcelona-Palma De Mallorca 26,904 GT 186.5 m 25.6 m 830 200 24
GNV Bridge Italy 2021 2021 Barcelona-Palma De Mallorca-Valencia 32,581 GT 203.3 m 25 m 1,000 240 24
GNV Spirit Italy 2001 2022 Naples-Palermo 32,728 GT 203.9 m 25 m 1,595 712 28
Golden Bridge Cyprus 1990 2021 Ibiza-Barcelona-Mahon 26,463 GT 186.5 m 24.8 m 1,500 500 23.5
GNV Sirio Italy 2004 2024 Genoa-Palermo 39,798 GT 214 m 26.4 m 2,908 1,080 27.5
GNV Auriga Italy 2005 2024 Genoa-Palermo 39,798 GT 214 m 26.4 m 2,908 1,080 27.5

Out of service

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Ship Flag Built Entered service Route Gross tonnage Length Width Passengers Vehicles Knots Image
Majestic Italy 1993 1993 Laid up in Marseille 32,777 GT 188.2 m 27.6 m 1,790 760 21
Excelsior Italy 1999 1999 Laid up in Genoa 39,777 GT 202.2 m 28 m 2,253 760 24
GNV Cristal Italy 1989 2013 Laid up in Napoli 33,336 GT 161.3 m 29 m 2,000 575 18
Rhapsody Italy 1996 2015 Laid up in Marseille 37,768 GT 161.8 m 38.8 m 2,448 716 23.5
GNV Allegra Italy 1987 2019 Laid up in Rijeka 31,914 GT 166.3 m 28.4 m 1,458 580 21.5

Future Ships

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Ship Flag Built Will Enter Service Gross tonnage Length Width Passengers Vehicles Knots
GNV Polaris Italy 2024 2024 47,089 GT 218 m 29.6 m 1,500 1,360 25
GNV Orion Italy 2025 2025 47,089 GT 218 m 29.6 m 1,500 1,360 25
GNV Virgo Italy 2026 2026 47,089 GT 218 m 29.6 m 1,500 1,360 25
GNV Aurora Italy 2026 2026 47,089 GT 218 m 29.6 m 1,500 1,360 25

Accidents and incidents

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  • 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

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  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. ^ a b "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.
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