A notice published on the website of the Palermo Harbour Office informs that Grimaldi Euromed has requested the decommissioning of the Italian flag for its ship Grande Roma, due to “sale to non-EU foreigners”. The buyer of the unit, the same document states, is the South Korean company Samjoo Maritime Co. Ltd, based in Seoul. A sister ship of the Grande Napoli, the Grande Roma was built in 2003 by the Croatian shipyard Uljanik. With a gross tonnage of 44,431 tonnes, it is 196 meters long and has a loading capacity of 5,379 cars. It is currently sailing off the coast of Morocco, as part of a journey that will take it from Taicang, China, to Bristol.
Regarding Samjoo Maritime Co. Ltd, its website indicates that the company, established in 2009, is active in the transport of solid bulk and ro-ro cargo, also through a subsidiary started in 2017 in Singapore. In the second business segment, Samjoo Maritime specifically offers routes for the transport of used cars “from Korea to the Middle East, Red Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Myanmar”. In addition, the company transports new cars from China and the Far East to the same destinations, as well as to India and Southeast Asia.
F.M.
