Hannibal to launch new Italy-Hungary-Romania connection

Hannibal, the multimodal subsidiary of Contship, will launch a new rail freight service connecting Milan to Budapest and Curtici. The company expects to commence operations by the end of this year.

The service will connect the Rail Hub Melzo, east of Milan, with the BILK terminal in Budapest and the Arad terminal in Curtici. The plan entails two weekly journeys per direction, with a transit time of roughly 48 hours. “Eurogate Intermodal will handle traction in Hungary and Romania, and Oceanogate will manage the Italian route”, Hannibal explained.

Consolidating cargo flows from Türkiye

The main benefit of this initiative will concern traffic coming from Türkiye, as Andrea Spagnuolo, Contship’s Sales & Business Development Manager, pointed out. In other words, the Curtici terminal will become a hub for Turkish cargo destined for Italy. A somewhat similar initiative was launched in May 2023, with the start of a new connection between the Rail Hub Melzo and the port of Trieste. Just like the new Italy-Romania-Hungary link, this service aims to facilitate the entrance of Turkish cargo to Europe.