RORO made a successful return to Gothenburg in May, as a strong number of ro-ro professionals came through the doors of this year’s event to search for the latest innovations and hear from some of the industry’s leading figures.

For the first time in RORO’s history, visitors were able to attend the extensive conference sessions free-of-charge. The host port, the Port of Gothenburg invited visitors to tour the Älvsborg Ro/Ro port and APM Terminals and visitors could also take advantage of the Training Zone, a new feature designed to provide information for visitors looking to develop their knowledge and skills in the sector.

During the three-day event, visitors browsed the stands to source the latest equipment and technology from leading suppliers such as Stena RoRo, Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics, DFDS Seaways, Wärtsilä and TTS Marine AB.

Vesa Marttinen, Vice President Marine Lifecycle Solutions at Wartsila, added: “With such a small industry, RORO is a must attend event. You get to meet all the right people and it is the ideal place to unveil new products, services and corporate thinking, which we have done successfully this year and have been very well received.”

There was also great interest surrounding the conference sessions, as visitors listened intently to industry leaders discuss the issues shaping the future of the rolling cargo industry. Highlights of this year’s event included presentations from Mike Garratt, Managing Director, MDS Transmodal who shared his projections on the Global Outlook for the RORO Market, Sara Sköld, Director at the Clean Shipping Index, who discussed the work of the organisation in more detail and Per Westling, Managing Director at Stena RoRo, who gave an in depth analysis on combining passengers with freight. In addition, a panel discussion on the future of North Sea and Baltic RoRo featuring Fredrik Lantz, Area Director of Scandinavia at Stena Line, Mårten Carlquist, CEO of North Sea RoRo, Pim de Lange, Area Director North Sea, Stena Line and Piotr Trusiewicz, Publishing Director for the Baltic Transport Journal also proved extremely popular.

Mårten Carlquist of North Sea RORO commented “Again Gothenburg has proven to be a successful location for the RORO Conference and Exhibition. Free admittance to seminars and panel discussions resulted in a high number of interested participants. RORO provided perfect opportunities to meet new and old contacts from our client base and the industry”

Sophie Ahmed, RORO’s Event Director, concluded: “The 2012 show took a significant step in the right direction, with a good number of visitors in attendance to see some of the largest ro-ro companies in the world display their latest solutions. We look forward to building on this success in the future and to welcoming the industry once again in 2014.”