Four shipping lines have agreed to restructure their joint Asia-South Africa (ASA) trade services to provide faster transit, more comprehensive coverage, and increased frequency starting October.
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) announced that the existing Asia-to-South Africa liner service will be revamped into two direct loops. One service will call South China, and the other loop will directly connect Central China.
The first service, the South China Loop (SAS), will commence from Kaohsiung on October 9, 2014, as a joint service with Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (“K” Line will call the service ASA South), Pacific International Lines (PIL), and Evergreen Line.
Initial sailing will have an expected time of arrival in Kaohsiung of October 9.
With a total rotation of 56 days, the South China service will have a port rotation of Kaohsiung, Xiamen, Hong Kong, Shekou, Singapore, Port Klang, Durban, Cape Town, Port Klang, Singapore, and back to Kaohsiung.
Seven vessels of 4,200- to 5,800-TEU capacities will be deployed on the route.
MOL’s second service, the Central China Loop (SAC), will be operated with “K” Line (under the service name ASA Central) and PIL, sailing on its maiden voyage from Shanghai on October 15, 2014.
The 49-day trip of the SAC service will have a port rotation of Shanghai, Ningbo, Keelung, Singapore, Durban, Singapore, and Shanghai. It will utilize six 4,200- to 5,800-TEU ships on the lane.
At present, the ASA service has a round trip of 63 days and makes calls at Shanghai, Ningbo, Keelung, Xiamen, Hong Kong, Shekou, Singapore, Port Klang, Port Louis, Durban, Cape Town, Port Klang, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Shanghai.
“K” Line said the two new Asia-South Africa services will enhance its service network between China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, and South Africa.
The new services will succeed the name of ongoing services under ASA, which will be suspended once the new loops are introduced, it added.
As this developed, Evergreen Line said it is also adjusting from October its existing joint Asia-South Africa service with Cosco, deploying two 4,200-TEU vessels on the FAX service.
The revised FAX route, effective from October 15, will involve calls to Shanghai, Ningbo, Keelung, Singapore, Durban, Singapore, and Shanghai.
A total of six 4,200- to 5,800-TEU vessels will be used on the trade sling.
Evergreen said its cooperation with its service partners will increase the line’s frequency of sailings on the Asia-South Africa trade from weekly to twice weekly and add Keelung, Xiamen, and Port Klang to its service network.
HMM sells off more shares for funds
On the other hand, Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM) said it has raised KRW117 billion (US$112.5 million) by selling new shares, the capital gained to be used to cut its debts and improve its profitability.
On September 24, HMM floated 6.19 million convertible preferred shares to Market Vantage, a Hong Kong-based investment firm, for KRW60 billion.
“This move is in accordance with a memorandum of understanding signed in June,” HMM said.
It initially issued 6.81 million shares at KRW8,370 per share, which are worth KRW57 billion in total, on June 16.
“The arrival of fresh funds is noteworthy because it does not involve asset sales and the money will
come in the form of investment that can reduce debt levels and improve overall financial health,”
said an HMM official, adding that such developments can lay the foundation for a return to profit.
Photo: HelenOnline
