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ONE, Yang Ming, OOCL to start extended intra-Asia loop April 11
TAIWAN's Yang Ming, Hong Kong's OOCL and ONE, the Japanese start-up will launch an intra-Asia service connecting South China and Japan with Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam.
The JMV (Japan-Malaysia-Vietnam) service starts April 11 with the northbound sailing of the 2,811-TEU YM Elixir from Shenzhen-Shekou bound for Osaka, Kobe, Nagoya, Yokohama, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore, Port Kelang, Singapore, Cai Mep, Shenzhen-Shekou, Hong Kong and back to Osaka.
The carrier group will launch a new service connecting South China and Japan with Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam starting in April, according to Yang Ming's online service schedules.
The JMV will operate with four vessels, one each from Yang Ming and OOCL and two from MOL, by that time part of the new Singapore-based Ocean Network Express (ONE), the merger of the Japanese Big 3 container operations - NYK, MOL and "K" Line.
iContainers Challenges ONE’s Ability to Harness Trio’s Strengths
Spanish online freight forwarder iContainers believes that the start of operations of the world’s newest container shipping line, Ocean Network Express (ONE), will be tested by its capability to harness synergies from the three liners it is made up of.
The joint venture, established in July 2017 in Singapore through the merger of Japan’s shipping lines, Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK), Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL), and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (K Line), commenced service on April 1, 2018.
The freight forwarder said the combined resources will give the Japanese trio larger economies of scale to allow them to access new markets.
The new Japanese line is no stranger to the industry. However, iContainers believes that the trio will face the challenge of taking on a “new brand identity”.
Through the merger, ONE is reportedly expected to cut around USD 440 million in costs in its first fiscal year of operations.
Report: COSCO’s OOCL Acquisition to Be Finalized by the End of June
The proposed takeover of Orient Overseas Container Lines (OOCL) by COSCO Shipping is expected to be completed by June 30, Reuters reported citing COSCO’s vice chairman as saying.
As informed by Huang Xiaowen, the company’s vice chairman, COSCO is in the process of answering questions on the acquisition from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States. The company also needs to get a number of domestic approvals to proceed with the planned acquisition.
In 2017, COSCO Shipping Holdings and Shanghai International Port Group (SIPG) made an offer to buyall issued shares of Orient Overseas International Lines (OOIL), the parent company of OOCL. The offer, made to the shareholders of OOIL, is worth USD 6.3 billion.
Once the transaction is completed, COSCO would hold 90.1% of OOIL, thus becoming the world’s third-largest container carrier. COSCO would have a combined fleet of 400 vessels, with capacity exceeding 2.9 million TEUs including orderbook, pushing CMA CGM from its spot, Drewry said last year.
The acquisition has been approved so far by COSCO’s shareholders, China State‑owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC), the US and the EU regulators.
Breaking: HMM Launches Mega-Ship Ordering Spree
South Korean shipping company Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM) has embarked on ordering mega containerships.
HMM plans to order a total of 20 mega-vessels, including twelve above 20,000 TEU and eight 14,000 TEU vessels which are considered to deploy in the Asia-North Europe and US East coast trades respectively.
The long-awaited order for the 22,000 TEU newbuildings first surfaced in December last year.
In order to make the ships compliant with the IMO’s Sulfur Cap, HMM said it would consider fitting the ships with scrubbers or LNG-fuelled engines. The decision would be made following discussions with shipbuilders in the race to build the ships.
The fleet investment push is aimed at boosting the shipping line’s competitiveness and it is part of South Korean government’s 5 Year Plan for Rebuilding Korean Shipping.
The plan will see the construction of about 200 ships in the next three years, including up to 140 bulkers and 60 containerships.
One of the key features of the plan is to provide financing to shipping companies which had limited access to ship investment funds, under the umbrella of a maritime powerhouse to be launched in July, named the Korea Maritime Promotion Corporation.
The South Korean shipping company aims to double its vessel capacity by 2022 as part of its long-term plan.
Source: World Maritime News
