Carriers Confirm Plans

Six container shipping lines in the Europe-Australasia-North America trade have finalized plans to introduce a new and improved liner service system for their existing operations on the world's longest trade-route. The new system will see five existing services replaced by two fixed-day weekly contra-rotating round-the-world operations. The six carriers are CMA CGM, Contship Containerlines, Hamburg Sud, Hapag Lloyd, Marfret and P&ONedlloyd. All six carriers will continue to compete with each other and market their services independently. Deploying ten newbuildings of 4,100 teu, one service will sail from Europe via the Suez Canal to Australia and New Zealand, returning via the Panama Canal and the US East Coast to Northern Europe. Contship and P&ONedlloyd will be vessel providers in this service which will call at ports in existing services but which are currently in the process of final review in Europe, Mediterranean and USEC in order to ensure that the trade continues to be provided with a guaranteed entry point into established markets. These include Tilbury, Hamburg, Rotterdam, La Spezia, Mediterranean hub ports - to be confirmed - Fremantle, Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Auckland, Napier, Port Chalmers, Caribbean hub port - to be confirmed - Savannah, Philadelphia, New York, Zeebrugge, Tilbury. The other service will sail from Europe to the US East Coast then transit the Panama Canal on route to the South Pacific Islands, New Zealand and Australia. It will return to Europe via ports in South East Asia and the Suez Canal. CMA CGM, Contship, Hamburg Sud, Hapag Lloyd, Marfret and P&ONedlloyd will provide the 12 ships of 2,200 teu minimum capacity that will be deployed in this service which will also call at ports in existing services and which are also currently in the process of final review in Europe, Mediterranean and USEC in order to ensure that the trade continues to be provided with a guaranteed entry point into established markets. These include Tilbury, Hamburg, Rotterdam, Le Havre, New York, Norfolk, Savannah, Caribbean hub port - to be confirmed - Papeete, Auckland, Noumea, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Fremantle, Singapore or Port Klang - to be confirmed, Jeddah, East and West Mediterranean hub ports - to be confirmed, La Spezia, Tilbury. Shippers will benefit from faster transit times and improved sailing frequencies compared to the existing service pattern. The fixed day weekly schedules of both routes will give shippers a guaranteed service-product throughout the system. In addition the significant reefer capacity on the newbuildings will be a major benefit for Australia and New Zealand producers of temperature sensitive cargoes. Subject to regulatory approval, the new liner service system will start in November with the westbound sailing of the Contship Auckland from Auckland and the eastbound sailing of the P&O Nedlloyd Remuera from Auckland.