MULTI-TRADE shipowner Safmarine has commenced a regular, multi-purpose vessel (MPV) service between Asia and West Africa.
Greg Ulicki, Safmarine's MPV executive said in a statement: "We have used the positioning voyages of our brand new, Chinese-built, Safmarine Angela, Safmarine Andisa and Safmarine Akwaba into Europe to determine if there is a demand by our customers on this trade. Based on our success we have decided to open up a monthly service and we will flexibly deploy our assets in order to serve our customer's needs on this trade."
The new service kicked off with the return of the Safmarine Akwaba from Africa to Asia full of eastbound cargo. The vessel is scheduled to arrive in Singapore on July 9 and thereafter call at the Chinese port of Zhangjiagang on July 16. From there the ship will head for Xingang (Tianjin) and, as of July 22, it will begin the monthly service to West Africa.
Major West African ports that will be served include Namibe, Lobito, Luanda, Pointe Noire, Libreville, Douala, Malabo, Sao Tome, Durban, Lome, Tema, Takoradi, Abidjan and San Pedro. The transit time from Xingang port to Matadi will be approximately 27 days.
Inducement calls at East African ports and additional Asian load port calls will also be scheduled to meet customer needs.
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