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Vietnam’s SSIT Welcomes MSC Boxship
Vietnam’s SP-SSA International Terminal (SSIT) in Cai Mep welcomed its first container vessel, the MSC Rosaria, on June 14. The boxship, owned and operated by MSC Geneva, will make regular port calls at SSIT in the future.
With effect from June, container operations were added to the terminal, complementing SSIT’s operations going forward.
SSIT is a joint venture port established in 2006 between two Vietnamese companies, namely Saigon Port and Vinalines, and the US-based SSA Marine.
Since October 2014, the port, which is the largest and busiest bulk port in southern Vietnam, has been handling bulk vessels.
Three Carriers Launch China-Australia Express Service
Shipping companies Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM), Evergreen and APL have teamed up on launching a new China-Australia service.
The weekly service covers the ports of Ningbo, Shanghai, Yantian, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. It is scheduled to start on August 17, with the first sailing of Hyundai Supreme at Ningbo port.
A total of five 4,600 TEU Panamax vessels will be deployed in the service, with HMM providing two and Evergreen and APL three vessels.
Previously, HMM provided the service through a slot purchase from Maersk, MSC, ONE, and Hamburg Süd.
HMM said it is now elevating its Australian agent to a subsidiary status to strengthen its position in Australia and provide more stable service. The process will be completed before launching the new service.
Separately, Evergreen said that the new service will augment the line’s two current weekly services that call at ports in China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Australia. The expansion in service offerings is in response to the increasing trade demand on the route, the company explained.
ONE Takes Delivery of 14,000 TEU Magenta-Color Newbuild
Ocean Network Express (ONE) has taken delivery of ONE Stork, its first magenta-colored newbuilding containership with a carrying capacity of 14,000 TEU.
The ship was delivered at Kure Shipyard of Japan Marine United Corporation. The sublet owner is Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK Line).
The 139,500 dwt ONE Stork features a length of 364 meters and a width of 50.6 meters. In addition, it has a market value of USD 94.72 million, Vessels Value’s data shows.
Flying the flag of Japan, the newbuild employs a hull form that allows improved cargo-loading efficiency achieved by minimized engine-room space. Moreover, the vessel applies the duel system in its main engine which is capable to choose two other output ranges (high and low) that allows flexible operation and improved fuel consumption rate, resulting in a significant reduction of carbon dioxide emissions, the company explained.
ONE Stork will phase in THE Alliance’s Asia to North America (East Coast) EC4 service with its port rotation Kaohsiung, Hong Kong, Yantian, Cai Mep, Singapore, New York, Norfolk, Savannah, Charleston, New York, and Singapore.
“ONE is excited to take delivery of first new-building containership with our new corporate color, magenta. The magenta color shows our intentional drive to do things differently and explore newness in this market,” Jeremy Nixon, Chief Executive Officer of ONE, commented.
ONE is a joint venture of Japanese shipping companies Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha. It commenced operations in April this year.
Hapag-Lloyd introduces US$1/TEU EBS, sets $55/TEU peak season surcharge
German shipping giant Hapag-Lloyd is to impose a US$1 per TEU emergency bunker surcharge (EBS) on the Asia-North Europe and Asia-Mediterranean trades from July 1, the latest carrier to announce measures to address the rising oil price.
The carrier's surcharge is well below the $55 to $60 per TEU fuel surcharge being levied by Maersk Line, Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC) and CMA CGM.
In a customer advisory, the Hamburg-based shipping line said the incremental $1 per TEU surcharge will be applied to inbound and outbound containers to and from Asia and Oceania.
However, Hapag-Lloyd surprised the market with a peak season surcharge of $55 per TEU that the ocean carrier said will be levied from today (June 1) on all trades out of China. The Asia-Europe peak season doesn't normally begin until July.
The Hapag-Lloyd bunker surcharge was well under the levels that will be charged by the other carriers, something questioned by Lars Jensen, CEO and partner of Sea Intelligence Consulting.
Mr Jensen said the reality was that carriers needed to have their costs covered and running loss-making services was not in the long-term interests of shippers, as seen in the Hanjin bankruptcy.
"The EBS is merely an additional symptom of this, and that is likely why the logic behind the EBS seems to be somewhat lacking, because de facto the problem being addressed is not an exceptional increase in fuel price, it is the collapse of the BAF mechanism itself over the past years."
Source: Vietnam Shipping Gazette, World Maritime News
