Freight Alliance Announces New Container Shipping Schedule and Contingency Fund against Insolvency

WORLDWIDE – Container freight shipping consortium THE Alliance has announced its new network sailing schedule which will start from April 2017. More than 240 ships will be deployed on 32 services connecting over 75 major ports throughout Asia, North Europe, the Mediterranean, North America, Canada, Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, Indian Sub Continent and the Middle East with a wide range of direct port-port-connections. It has also come up with a guarantee for shippers should one of its five members fail financially.

THE Alliance, which is composed of Hapag-Lloyd of Germany, Yang Ming of Taiwan and K Line, Mitsui OSK Line (MOL) and Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK) of Japan, has announced that the group is implementing a new contingency plan in the event a member of THE Alliance suffers a bankruptcy so as to protect customers from the problems that were encountered when the Korean box line Hanjin collapsed into insolvency last year.

The five member lines will establish an independent trustee to manage funds to be used in the case there is insolvency within the group. It is envisioned that the fund will be used to continue alliance operations in the event of insolvency of one or more member lines. The independent trust fund shall safeguard customers’ cargo on board of the affected members’ ships and will be carried to the port of destination.

This guarantee is a first since the rash of worldwide container vessel sharing schemes began and was warmly welcomed by the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC), who’s Commissioner, William P. Doyle, said:

"I welcome this initiative undertaken by THE Alliance carriers to shippers and other customers in the event a carrier member becomes insolvent. The Hanjin bankruptcy served as a wakeup call to carriers, shippers, and government authorities. THE Alliance’s efforts to create a mechanism to keep cargo and commerce flowing in the event of another carrier bankruptcy demonstrates that carriers and alliances have heard the concerns of the shipping public and are working to create commercial solutions to address those concerns. It is far better for the private sector to develop their own commercial safeguards in an industry as complex as shipping, than to have governments come in and dictate regulations."

The final port rotations of the total 32 services will be:

Asia and North Europe

FE 1: Kobe – Nagoya – Shimizu – Tokyo – Singapore – Jeddah – Rotterdam – Hamburg – Southampton – Le Havre – Singapore – Kobe

FE 2: Xingang – Dalian – Qingdao – Shanghai – Ningbo – Hong Kong – Yantian – Singapore – Tangier – Southampton – Hamburg – Rotterdam – Le Havre – Tangier – Jebel Ali – Hong Kong – Qingdao – Xingang

FE 3: Hong Kong – Xiamen – Kaohsiung – Yantian – Rotterdam – Hamburg – Antwerp – London Gateway – Piraeus – Singapore – Hong Kong

FE 4: Pusan – Ningbo – Shanghai – Rotterdam – Hamburg – Antwerp – Southampton – Shekou – Yantian – Pusan

FE 5: Laem Chabang – Cai Mep – Singapore – Colombo – Rotterdam – Hamburg – Antwerp – London Gateway – Jeddah – Colombo – Singapore – Laem Chabang

Asia and the Mediterranean

MD 1: Qingdao – Shanghai – Ningbo – Yantian – Singapore – Damietta – Barcelona – Valencia – Fos – Genoa – Damietta – Singapore – Shekou – Qingdao

MD 2:Pusan – Ningbo – Shanghai – Kaohsiung – Yantian – Singapore – Jeddah – Genoa – La Spezia – Barcelona – Valencia – Singapore – Hong Kong – Pusan

MD 3:Pusan – Shanghai – Ningbo – Yantian – Singapore – Jeddah – Ashdod – Piraeus – Istanbul (Ambarli) – Izmir/Aliaga – Mersin – Jeddah – Singapore – Kaohsiung – Pusan

Trans Pacific – West Coast

PN 1:Qingdao – Shanghai – Nagoya – Tokyo – Tacoma – Vancouver – Tokyo – Nagoya – Kobe – Qingdao

PN 2:Singapore – Laem Chabang – Cai Mep – Kaohsiung – Yantian – Tacoma – Vancouver – Tokyo – Kobe – Kaohsiung – Singapore

PN 3:Hong Kong – Yantian – Ningbo – Shanghai – Pusan – Vancouver – Seattle – Pusan – Hong Kong

PS 1: Kobe – Nagoya – Tokyo – Sendai – Los Angeles/Long Beach – Oakland – Tokyo – Nagoya – Kobe

PS 2: Kobe – Nagoya – Shimizu – Tokyo – Los Angeles/Long Beach – Oakland –Tokyo – Kobe

PS 3:Singapore – Laem Chabang – Cai Mep – Hong Kong – Los Angeles/Long Beach – Oakland –– Tokyo – Hong Kong – Singapore

PS 4:Hong Kong – Yantian – Kaohsiung – Keelung – Los Angeles/Long Beach – Oakland – Keelung – Kaohsiung – Da Chan Bay – Hong Kong

PS 5: Shanghai – Ningbo – Los Angeles/Long Beach – Oakland – Shanghai

PS 6: Qingdao – Ningbo – Shanghai – Pusan – Los Angeles/Long Beach – Oakland – Pusan – Qingdao

PS 7: Xiamen – Hong Kong – Yantian – Los Angeles/Long Beach – Xiamen

PS 8: Dalian – Xingang – Qingdao – Pusan – Los Angeles/Long Beach – Oakland – Pusan – Kwangyang – Dalian

Trans Pacific – East Coast (via Panama and Suez)

EC 1: Ningbo – Shanghai – Pusan – Tokyo – (Panama Canal) – Manzanillo – Savannah – Jacksonville – Charleston – Norfolk – Miami (Seasonal) – Manzanillo – (Panama Canal) – Balboa – Los Angeles/Long Beach – Oakland – Tokyo – Kobe – Ningbo

EC 2: Qingdao – Ningbo – Shanghai – Pusan – (Panama Canal) – New York – Boston – Wilmington – Savannah – (Panama Canal) – Pusan – Qingdao

EC 3: Kaohsiung – Xiamen – Hong Kong – Yantian – Shanghai – (Panama Canal) – Savannah – Norfolk – (Panama Canal) – Balboa – Pusan – Kaohsiung

EC 4: Kaohsiung – Hong Kong – Yantian – Cai Mep – Singapore – (Suez Canal) – New York – Norfolk – Savannah – Jacksonville – Charleston – (Suez Canal) – Singapore – Kaohsiung

EC 5: Laem Chabang – Cai Mep – Singapore – Colombo – (Suez Canal) – Halifax – New York – Savannah – Norfolk – Halifax – (Suez Canal) – Jebel Ali – Singapore – Laem Chabang

Trans-Atlantic

AL 1: Bremerhaven – Antwerp – London Gateway – Norfolk – Philadelphia – New York – Halifax – Bremerhaven

AL 2: London Gateway – Le Havre – Rotterdam – Bremerhaven – New York – Charleston – London Gateway

AL 3: Antwerp – Bremerhaven – Southampton – Charleston – Savannah – Port Everglades – Houston – Savannah – Norfolk – Antwerp

AL 4: Southampton – Antwerp – Bremerhaven – Le Havre – Veracruz – Altamira – Houston – New Orleans – Mobile – Southampton

AL 5: Southampton – Rotterdam – Hamburg – Antwerp – Le Havre – Savannah – Cartagena – Los Angeles/Long Beach – Oakland – Seattle/Tacoma – Vancouver – Oakland – Los Angeles/Long Beach – Balboa – Cartagena – Caucedo – Savannah – Southampton

AL 6: Salerno – Livorno – La Spezia – Genoa – FOS – Halifax – New York – Norfolk – Savannah – Salerno

AL 7: Barcelona – Tarragona – Valencia – Algeciras – Halifax – New York – Norfolk – Savannah – Valencia – Tarragona – Barcelona

Asia and the Middle East

AGX: Pusan – Qingdao – Shanghai – Ningbo – Shekou – Singapore – Jebel Ali – Dammam – Jubail – Abu Dhabi – Port Kelang – Singapore – Ningbo – Pusan