Messina Line will launch its new West Med Line in September, a regular service that will combine into a single network the connections that the shipping company currently maintains with Algeria and Libya and will include direct stops at the Spanish ports of Castellón and Barcelona.
The reorganization will allow both services to be concentrated in a rotation through the Western Mediterranean that will connect Spain, France, Italy, Libya, and Algeria. The company plans to maintain regular departures from the Spanish and French ports every ten days.
The standard rotation communicated by Messina Line will start in Castellón and continue to Barcelona, Fos, Genoa, Misurata, Tripoli, back to Misurata, and Algiers, before returning to Castellón port.
The new scheme will allow the shipping company to maintain direct connections between the markets served by these stops and offer links to other destinations through Genoa. Messina Line also expects to improve the transit times of goods from services crossing the Suez Canal through the connections made via Misurata.
The first departure announced from Castellón corresponds to the Libertas H., which will make journey 298 and has its departure scheduled for September 6. The second will be operated by the Pacific Dalian, on its journey 310, with departure scheduled from Castellón port for September 17.
The scheduling between both stops conforms to the approximate frequency of ten days announced by the company for departures from Spain and France.
Castellón will occupy a specific position within the service configuration by becoming the starting and ending point of the standard rotation. After leaving Castellón port, the vessels will stop in Barcelona before heading to Fos, in France, and subsequently to Genoa.
From the Italian port, the route will continue towards North Africa. The first stop will be Misurata, from where the vessels will head to Tripoli before returning to Misurata. The itinerary will continue towards Algiers and finish again in Castellón.
The double stop in Misurata is part of the configuration communicated by Messina Line for the West Med Line. The company also links this port with the connections aimed at improving transit times for cargo from routes passing through Suez.
The launch of the West Med Line represents the integration of the services that Messina Line previously provided separately to Algeria and Libya. The new structure groups these connections into a single circuit and maintains stops in the Spanish, French, Italian, Libyan, and Algerian markets.
The shipping company states that the reorganization is intended to improve frequency and connectivity of its network in the Western Mediterranean, in addition to offering connections for the destinations served through Genoa.
The new line will begin operating in September with the first two departures announced from Castellón. The Libertas H. will inaugurate the schedule on the 6th and the Pacific Dalian will make the following departure on the 17th.
Thus, Messina Line configures a service with the rotation Castellón-Barcelona-Fos-Genoa-Misurata-Tripoli-Misurata-Algiers-Castellón, integrating into a single line its existing connections with the markets of Libya and Algeria.
