Ellerman City Liners unveils new Baltic express service

UK-based Ellerman City Liners has launched a new short-sea shipping service connecting the Baltics with the UK and the Benelux region, marking the 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 short-sea and deep-sea hubs. 

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

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 Ellerman Network, following its acquisition in November.  

The BALTEX becomes the latest addition to Ellerman City Liners’ portfolio of short-sea 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 short-sea container capacity in the Baltic region and offers shippers up to 50 percent lower CO2 emissions compared to road transport alternatives. 

Peter Andrews, Commercial Director at Ellerman City Liners, 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.”