Moby Lines

Moby Lines (Moby Lines S.p.A.) is an Italian shipping company that operates ferries and cruiseferries between the Italian or French mainland and the islands of Elba, Sardinia and Corsica. The company was founded in 1959 under the name Navigazione Arcipelago Maddalenino (NAVARMA for short).

Moby S.p.A.
IndustryPassenger transportation, Freight transportation
Founded1959
SuccessorCosta Armonic Cruise
HeadquartersMilan, Italy
Area served
Italy, France, Corsica, Sardinia
Key people
Vincenzo Onorato, Chairman
SubsidiariesSt. Peter Line
Tirrenia
Toremar
Websitewww.moby.it
MS Moby Aki in Livorno, 2007.

In 2006 Moby Lines purchased Lloyd Sardegna. The company is known for using Warner Bros. Looney Tunes characters as the external livery of its ships. Notable events include the Moby Prince disaster in 1991, which resulted in the death of 140 people.

History
Moby Wonder in Livorno, 22 of February, 2011.

NAVARMA was founded in 1959 by Achille Onorato, and started traffic from Sardinia to the islands on coast of Sardinia with the small ferry M/S Maria Maddalena purchased from Denmark. In February 1966 NAVARMA purchased a second ferry, M/S Bonifacioo, and started service between Sardinia and Corsica. The company slowly expanded, purchasing another ferry in 1967 and taking delivery of two newbuilds in 1974 and 1981. With the larger fleet, new routes to the Italian mainland were also introduced.

In 1982 the company acquired M/S Free Enterprise II from Townsend Thoresen, renamed her M/S Moby Blu and painted her in the "blue whale" livery that later came to characterise Moby Lines (the company name still remained NAVARMA at this point). The Moby Blu was over twice the size of NAVARMA's previously largest ship. By 1988 four additional larger ferries (all with Moby-prefixed names) had joined by NAVARMA fleet and additional routes to the Italian mainland were opened.

In 1991 one of the ferries of the fleet, the Moby Prince, was involved in the worst disaster in the Italian merchant navy since World War II. This resulted in 140 deaths.

During the early 1990s NAVARMA acquired further used ferries, which replaced the Moby ferries acquired in the 1980s. During the same time "Moby Lines" was adopted as the official company name. From 1996 onwards the company fleet has grown radically with addition of new, larger and faster tonnage, including the newbuilt fast cruiseferries Moby Wonder, Moby Freedom and Moby Aki. Around 2003 Moby Lines entered an agreement with Warner Bros. to paint their vessels in liveries featuring Looney Tunes characters. However, only the larger ships have such liveries, the company's smaller ships either have similar graphics not featuring the Looney Tunes characters, or simply the Moby Lines' whale logo.

In 2020, in a departure away from Moby Lines' signature business model of acquiring vintage tonnage for its routes, it was announced that steel cutting has started for Moby Lines' two newbuild vessels on order from the Guangzhou Shipyard. These newbuilds will be 238 metres (784 feet) long and roughly 69,500 GT, and specifically designed for the 7-9 hour Livorno-Olbia ferry crossing. These newbuild twins are earmarked to replace the Moby Aki and Moby Wonder between 2022 and 2023.[1][2]

Fleet

Current fleet
ShipFlagBuiltEntered serviceRouteGross tonnageLengthWidthPassengersVehiclesKnots
MS BastiaItaly19741974Piombino—Portoferraio1,936 GT75 m13 m40010018
MS GiragliaItaly19811981Santa Teresa di Gallura—Bonifacio2,041 GT75 m13 m40010018
MS Moby NikiItaly19742016Piombino—Portoferraio9,089 GT118,7 m18,5 m1,44037318
MS Moby DadaItaly19812016Genoa—Bastia25,905 GT166.1 m28.5 m1,76030522
MS Moby TommyItaly20022007Chartered to Tirrenia28,915 GT212 m25 m2,2001,00030
MS Moby AkiItaly20052005Genoa—Olbia36,284 GT175 m27 m2,20075029
MS Moby WonderItaly20012001Genoa—Olbia36,093 GT175 m27 m2,20075029
MS Moby AleItaly19691990Piombino—Portoferraio3,937 GT93 m16 m80016019.5
MS Moby VincentItaly19741990Livorno—Bastia12,108 GT120 m22 m1,60057017.5
MS Moby Baby TwoItaly19742000Piombino—Portoferraio8,570 GT118,6 m18,5 m1,15030017.5
MS Moby DreaItaly19752003Genoa—Olbia22,528 GT185 m27 m1,90050027
MS Moby OttaItaly19762006Genoa—Olbia22,528 GT185 m27 m1,90050027
MS Moby KissItaly19752016Piombino—Portoferraio11,977 GT115.35 m20.6 m1,60042018
MS Moby CorseItaly19782010Chartered to SNAV19,321 GT152 m25 m1,20045021
MS Moby Zazà Italy 1982 2015 Chartered to Baleària 22,161 GT 153 m 24.2 m 2,048 530 20
MS Pietro Manunta Italy 1991 ? Livorno—Olbia (only freight) 22,059 GT 169 m 26 m ? ? 16

Former fleet
  • Maria Maddalena (1959-1978) as Maria Maddalena for SNAP since 2005
  • Elba Prima (1967-2007) scrapped as Prima in Aliaga, Turkey in 2008.
  • Agostino Lauro (1968-1974) scrapped in Aliaga, Turkey in 2008.
  • Portoferraio (1974-2001) as Bomaris Legend for Bomaris Shipping since 2016.
  • Citta di Piombino (1978-2002) as Don Peppino for GesTour since 2010.
  • Moby Blu (1982-2003) scrapped as Moby B in Alang, India in 2003.
  • Moby Prince (1985-1991) in 11th April 1991 the ship departured from Livorno and collided with the tanker Agip Abruzzo; the ship caught fire and 141 passengers died onboard. In 1998 the ship partially sank in the port of Livorno and then the ship sold for scrap in Aliaga, Turkey in 1998.
  • Moby Dream (1986-1994) scrapped as Sardegna Bella in Aliaga, Turkey in 2001.
  • Moby Love (1986-1993) scrapped in Aliaga, Turkey in 2011.
  • Moby Will (1988-1993) scrapped as Aljubi in Alang, India in 2007.
  • Moby King (1989-2002) scrapped in Alang, India in 2002.
  • Moby Baby (1990-2017) scrapped as Anemos in Aliaga, Turkey in 2018.
  • Moby Fantasy (1992-2013) scrapped in Aliaga, Turkey in 2013.
  • Moby Magic (1997-2005) scrapped in Aliaga, Turkey in 2005.
  • Moby Love (1998-2017) as Sporades Star for Seajets since 2021.
  • Moby Gum (1998-2003) scrapped as Moby G in Bombay, India in 2004.
  • Moby Rider (1998-2007) scrapped as M. River in Alang, India in 2007.
  • Moby Freedom (2001-2012) as Finladia for Eckero Line since 2019.
  • Luigi Pa (1987-2017) former Isola delle Stelle for Lloyd Sardegna, as Cenk M since 2019.
  • Giuseppe Sa (2006-2022) former Isola delle Perle for Lloys Sardegna, sold to an Arabic company in 2022.
  • Eliana M (2006-2007) former Golfo del Sole for Lloyd Sardegna, scrapped in Aliaga, Turkey in 2012.
  • Maria Grazia On. (2006-2007) former Golfo degli Angeli for Lloyd Sardegna, as Venezia for Grimaldi Lines since 2019.
  • Golfo Aranci (2006-2007) as Florencia for Grimaldi Lines since 2007.
  • Massimo M. (2010-2013) Scrapped in 2013.

References
  1. "Steel cutting starts on the first of Moby's next-generation ferries". 3 June 2020.
  2. "June (And early July) 2019 news roundup". 18 July 2019.

Further reading
  • Seville, Richard (2009). Mediterranean Ferries. Ramsey, Isle of Man: Ferry Publications. ISBN 9781871947984.
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