Global RORO Shipping Market Research Report 2023-Competitive Analysis, Status and Outlook by Type, Downstream Industry, and Geography, Forecast to 2029

Global RORO Shipping Market Research Report 2023-Competitive Analysis, Status and Outlook by Type, Downstream Industry, and Geography, Forecast to 2029

Roll-on/Roll-off shipping, also commonly referred to as RORO shipping, is an international transport method wherein cargo (usually non-containerized) is loaded onto a roll-on, roll-off marine vessel. Typically pulled or driven into the belly of these vessels via the ramp, RORO cargo must either be placed upon or have been already secured to, a set of wheels in order to load. Once on board, cargo is lashed into place on one of the RORO vessel’s many internal levels and readied for transit.

Market Overview:

The latest research study on the global RORO Shipping market finds that the global RORO Shipping market reached a value of USD 23902.8 million in 2022. It’s expected that the market will achieve USD 34499.4 million by 2028, exhibiting a CAGR of 6.31% during the forecast period.

Oceanic transport can be a harrowing enterprise. With so many touchpoints to undergo, it’s not uncommon for products — especially those that can’t fit in a container — to take on damage during transit. Whether it’s bumps and bruises during breakbulk loading/unloading processes or the mix of issues that stem from exposure to the elements, safely moving cargo across water can be challenging. Since cargo is safely housed within the belly of these vessels, roll-on/roll-off service is known to significantly reduce the chances of cargo damage due to tarps failing — or another unforeseen issue — during the course of a shipment. And, instead of having to hold your breath as cargo is hoisted by a crane on both sides of its journey (as is the case with breakbulk transport), RORO removes these handling points through the use of ramps and Mafi trailers. For these reasons, roll-on/roll-off transportation is seen as one of the safest methods for transporting nearly every kind of commodity.

Increasing demand for exporting light vehicles from China

The export of light vehicles from China has boomed over the past couple of years. China has lower production costs than western produced vehicles. In recent years, the constant improvement of Chinese auto products has resulted in Chinese brands being more recognized in the international market. In particular, NEVs have become the current export highlight, with some enterprises successfully entering markets of developed countries in Europe. The main markets for Chinese-made NEVs are developed countries within Western Europe, such as Belgium and the UK. There is every reason to believe that China will prioritize increasing its export numbers to gain market shares in the growing global electric vehicle market. Increasing demand for exporting light vehicles from China has driven the demand for RORO shipping.

Shipping vehicles in containers

In recent years, RoRo shipping has started to be eclipsed by the shipping of vehicles in containers, something which has been made more economical by the development of new racking systems, such as R-RAK and EL-RAK solutions. These have made the transport of cars in shipping containers more affordable by increasing the carrying capacity of each container and making each vehicle more secure. Rather than just one or two vehicles per container, which is an expensive way of shipping, racking systems increase accommodation to four or even six vehicles, lowering the cost of transport considerably.
Shipping container transport has also increased the number of shipping options open to haulage companies, as logistics planners are no longer solely dependent on established RoRo shipping lanes and deep water ports. Once secured within shipping containers, vehicles can effortlessly be transferred from container ships to road transport, rail, or barge transportation – slashing delivery times and lowering overall costs. Containerization also makes vehicles more secure when awaiting embarkation at the port, no longer vulnerable to damage and theft in large, portside car parks. The way containerized vehicles are transported threatens the development of the RORO shipping industry.

Region Overview:

In 2022, the share of the RORO Shipping market in Asia Pacific stood at 40.34%.

Company Overview:

Wallenius Wilhelmsen
Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics was a privately owned Norwegian/Swedish shipping company, established in 1999 and co-owned by the two shipping companies Wallenius Lines and Wilh. Wilhelmsen. Prior to its restructuring and division of its services in 2017 as the Wallenius Wilhelmsen Group, the company offered a range of logistics services, including supply chain management, ocean transportation using Neo-bulk cargo ships, terminal handling, inland distribution and technical services. After rebranding and reorganisation, it remains one of the world's largest companies in the transporting of Roll-on/roll-off equipment: automobiles, heavy machinery (mining, construction, farming equipment), yachts, trains, power stations, trailers, Mafi roll trailers and others.

Grimaldi Group

The Grimaldi Group is a private shipping company owned by the Grimaldi family (Emanuele Grimaldi) and based in Naples, Italy. The Grimaldi Group is a conglomerate of companies linked to the logistics business with a main focus on shipping. Grimaldi operates a large fleet of ro-ro, ro-ro/multipurpose, con-ro multipurpose, PCTC (Pure Car and Truck Carrier), ro-pax and cruise ferries vessels.

Wallenius Wilhelmsen is one of the major players operating in the RORO Shipping market, holding a share of 16.84% in 2023.

Segmentation Overview:

By type, PCC segment accounted for the largest share of market in 2022.

Application Overview:

By application, the International Shipping segment occupied the biggest share from 2018 to 2022.

Key Companies in the global RORO Shipping market covered in Chapter 3:

Sasco Group
Grimaldi Group
Stena Line
CLdN
Hyundai Glovis
MOL
Wallenius Wilhelmsen
Höegh Autoliners
“K” LINE
Toyofuji Shipping
NYK LINE
CMA CGM
Sallaum Lines
Siem Car Carriers

In Chapter 4 and Chapter 14.2, on the basis of types, the RORO Shipping market from 2018 to 2029 is primarily split into:

PCC
PCTC
Others

In Chapter 5 and Chapter 14.3, on the basis of Downstream Industry, the RORO Shipping market from 2018 to 2029 covers:

Domestic Shipping
International Shipping

Geographically, the detailed analysis of consumption, revenue, market share and growth rate, historic and forecast (2018-2029) of the following regions are covered in Chapter 8 to Chapter 14:

North America (United States, Canada)
Europe (Germany, UK, France, Italy, Spain, Russia, Netherlands, Turkey, Switzerland, Sweden)
Asia Pacific (China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, India, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia)
Latin America (Brazil, Mexico, Argentina)
Middle East & Africa (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, South Africa)