Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM) is more than doubling the capacity of its Korea/Middle East Service (KMS) by transferring five post-Panamax ships currently used in the transpacific trade.
The Seoul-based line said the switch is “a direct response to the strong growth between the two regions.”
Five 2,181-TEU vessels operating on the KMS will through mid-July be replaced by four 4,651-TEU ships from the New World Alliance — APL, HMM, and MOL — and its Pacific China Express (PCX) service, while a fifth 4,469-TEU vessel will come from their Pacific South 1 (PS1) service.
Using vessel data from Clarkson Ship Register, the upgrade will boost container capacity on the KMS string by 112 percent. Four 4,768-TEU HMM newbuildings will take the place of the ships being moved from the transpacific PCX loop.
The KMS port rotation will remain as Kwangyang, Busan, Keelung, Hong Kong, Yantian, Singapore, Port Kelang, Jebel Ali, Karachi, Singapore, Hong Kong and back to Kwangyang. Maersk Line and MOL will have slot allocations on the new KMS.
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