D'Alesio Group

The Group was founded in 1930 by the Cavaliere del lavoro* Gaetano D’Alesio (*Honorary Knighthood for services to the industry).

When he was 18 the young Gaetano, whose father Antonio from Torre del Greco was Master of small vessels employed in coral fishing, got his license as a customs agent and decided to set up his own business. During the Second World War aside from his customs agency activity, he also started building fishing vessels which was his first step within the naval sector, a sector he has never abandoned.

In 1947 he commissioned the small tanker, Splendor, with a capacity of just 70 tons from the Orlando shipyard in Livorno which was used for fuel shipments to Sardinia. In the beginning of the 1950’s, while passing through Genoa, he noticed the storage tanks of the refineries and the depots built up on the mountains outside the harbour and decided to do the same in Livorno. The first tank of his oil terminal was built with double bolted sheet metal, purchased from the Americans who were leaving Italy, which was disassembled and reassembled in the depot. In time the installation grew (today it has a storage capacity of 200.000 tons) and also the shipping activity saw progress and constant development.

In 1965 his young sons Antonio e Nello joined their father in the management of the Company. The maritime shipping activity and bunkering in the port of Livorno has experienced exponential growth. From three ships in 1965 it grew to 10 vessels in 1975 and the seamen employed went from thirty to two hundred. At the beginning of the eighties,  D’Alesio became partners with Neri and Fremura in the management of the Sintermar container terminal, which at the time was the largest private terminal in Livorno and one of the most important in the Mediterranean. The nineties marked the beginning of the Company’s major transformation. The third generation joined the management and the “D’alesio Group” was born. The Gaetano D’alesio was purchased and the flag ship of 100.000 dwt carried out lighterages to the VLCC in the gulf of Texas chartered by Exxon over a period of eleven years. The expansion of the fleet has continued with the construction of three tankers, Liliana D’Alesio, Francesco D’Alesio and Calafuria, commissioned by Fincantieri of Livorno, which followed the construction of the M/c Antonio D’Alesio in Ancona.

The Cavaliere del lavoro Gaetano D’Alesio, passed away peacefully in 1996 at the age of 84 having had the satisfaction of also seeing his grandchildren Gaetano, Antonio,  Mauro, Francesco and Elisa join the Company.

Today the Group represents an important reality both for its modern fleet of tankers and for the harbour logistics, made up of the container terminal and of the coastal depots that operate within the entire range of oil products (from fuels to bitumen).

The new millennium saw the addition to the fleet of four new “Korean” constructions of 40.000 dwt, and the signing for another 4 ships with the same shipyard (two of 40.000 dwt and two of 50.000 dwt). In addition, the contract was formalised for the construction of two bulk carriers of 56.000 dwt.

Other two vessels of 15.500 dwt were commissioned in Turkey, and to complete the renewal of the fleet for the small cabotage (bunker service and local traffic) have also been purchased four tankers of 2.000 dwt.

The D'Alesio Group has been chosen as the Tanker operator of the Year 2010 in the sought after prestigious Lloyds List Italian Shipping Awards, that are assigned to recognize the excellent of the Italian maritime industry, to identify quality and success reached in the different sectors and to promote the role played by the companies both in International trade and for the vital contribution to the national economy. The important recognition has beem awarded to the D'Alesio Group in the Tanker operator category.

By 2012 the fleet will be comprised of 12 oil tankers, all with a double hull, and 2 bulk carriers between 2.000 and 56.000 dwt.