Shortsea container capacity boost in Baltic with new express service  

Ellerman City Liners has launched a shortsea shipping service connecting the Baltics with the UK and the Benelux region, marking a first-of-its-kind route for the company in the region.

The BALTEX service will operate on a fixed weekly rotation, calling at Riga, Latvia; Gdynia, Poland; Teesport and Tilbury in the UK; Rotterdam, the Netherlands; and Oslo, Norway.  

The weekly service offers a capacity of 1,160 TEU per leg and provides fast transhipment connections to Spain and Portugal via the Port of Tilbury, one of the UK’s major shortsea and deepsea hubs.

The British container shipping company, part of the GB Global group of businesses, plans to launch the service on 28 January.

The new service expands Ellerman City Liners’ presence in the Baltics and strengthens its position in the Rotterdam-Oslo corridor. Further service developments are expected in line with the common integration of Viasea services into the Ellerman Network, following its acquisition in November. 

The BALTEX becomes the latest addition to Ellerman City Liners’ portfolio of shortsea services across northern Europe, with six other lines running iNEX 1, iNEX 2, iPEX 1 & 2, iPEX 3 and iBEX 1. 

The launch comes amid growing demand for reliable shortsea container capacity in the Baltic region and offers shippers up to 50% lower CO2 emissions compared with road transport alternatives. 

Ellerman City Liners commercial director Peter Andrews said, “The BALTEX marks Ellerman’s first dedicated Baltic service, and we’re proud to give customers a fast, reliable and more sustainable link between the Baltics, the UK, Benelux and Iberia – supported by our teams across Europe.”