South Korean ocean carrier Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM) has created an operational alliance with three compatriot feeder operators with the intention of covering the intra-Asia service gap left in the wake of Hanjin Shipping’s collapse.
The vessel-sharing arrangement (VSA), called the Mini Alliance, involves South Korea’s second biggest box shipping line after Hanjin and the feeder carriers Korea Marine Transport, Sinokor Merchant Marine, and Heung-A Shipping.
The cooperation is scheduled to start joint services on Southeast Asian routes by the end of this month, utilizing 15 vessels on four loops from South Korean ports to Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Thailand.
These services are expected to fill in for Hanjin Shipping’s Incheon-Busan-Indonesia and Gwangyang-Busan-Vietnam/Thailand services.
HMM will be using five vessels, the biggest of which is a 5,000-TEU container ship. The others are a 2,800-TEU ship, two 2,200-TEU ships, and a 1,700-TEU ship.
HMM told the local press the decision to forge the VSA was made in order to “minimise losses of the shippers on the southeast Asian route due to Hanjin Shipping fallout and to compete with global shipping lines.”
Debt-saddled Hanjin Shipping finally succumbed after years of losses and sought court receivership on August 31 to protect its assets from creditors.
HMM has been helping fill the hole in the ocean transport network left by its hapless compatriot by operating 13 ships on the trans-Pacific and Asia-Europe trades once served by Hanjin.
Staying competitive against international shipping lines appears to be the reason for the rise of the new alliance, following earlier reports that HMM was looking to absorb Hanjin’s healthy assets.
Analysts said this solution appears to be the most logical in order to protect services that would be put in jeopardy by Hanjin’s demise.
HMM, which barely escaped bankruptcy itself, also said it is currently in discussion regarding joining the 2M alliance of top box liner companies Maersk Line and Mediterranean Shipping Company.
The Korean carrier said it will be tackling the issue of shipping routes with 2M until October, hoping to ink a contract by November in preparation for entering the alliance by April next year.
Photo: Shipping21
