Caronte with SACE SIMEST and Banco BPM on course for Ireland

SACE SIMEST, the export and internationalization hub of the CDP Group, has granted a €34 million loan issued by Banco BPM to Caronte & Tourist, a private shipping company that covers short and medium-distance ferry routes.

The loan is for the purchase of a Ro-Ro Pax vessel to be used by Irish Ferries on routes between Ireland and France. The support of SACE SIEMST and Banco BPM will enable the Messina-based company to expand its fleet, covering foreign and international routes.

“The purchase of Cartour Epsilon has further consolidated the Group’s fleet, confirming our position as one of Southern Italy’s shipping companies with the best market outlook”, said Caronte & Tourist CEO Rino Famiani.

Caronte & Tourist is a private shipping company, established in 2003 following the merger of two historic maritime transport companies, Caronte, based in Calabria, and Tourist Ferry Boat, in Sicily, operating in the short and medium-range ferry sector. In recent years, the Group has broadened its scope through a process of growth that culminated in the recent acquisition of a stake in Basalt Infrastructure Partners, an international fund specialised in global infrastructure, specifically energy, transport and utilities. The financial and industrial partnership between the fund and the Sicilian Group envisages a business plan that will lead to a fleet renewal programme, with a particular focus on environmental sustainability.