Zim, Hapag, MOL to offer fast-transit Europe-West Africa loop

ZIM, Hapag-Lloyd and Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) plan to offer a fixed day of the week north Europe to west African ports starting April 5, reported London's Containerisation International.


The rotation will be Antwerp, Hamburg, Thamesport, Antwerp, Dakar, Lagos-Tin Can Island, Tema, Abidjan, Amsterdam and back to Antwerp. Amsterdam calls only will be made in the main cocoa exporting season, and calls at Abidjan have been suspended for the duration of European Union sanctions over the disputed Ivory Coast election result.


"With its fast transit times, this will be useful for shippers of fresh produce from West Africa to Europe and further afield," said MOL's Colin de Souza, vice president for north south trades.


Zim, Hapag-Lloyd and MOL have been operating separate services, Zim's NAF, Hapag's WAX and MOL's on which they have been trading slots with each other.


"We have rationalised and upgraded and we will all be working together as vessel providers," said Mr de Souza, adding that the new combination puts MOL in a much stronger position than before.


Hapag-Lloyd said in a statement that the decision to upgrade the operation reflected its "continuous efforts to improve our services to our customers".


The move also supports carrier strategies of enhancing their emerging market presence in trades which they feel offer growth prospects than their established east-west lines, noted London's CI.


It is understood that Hapag-Lloyd/MOL will operate three ships and MOL three more, all of which are in the 1,700-TEU range.
(Source:http://www.schednet.com)