BWR: Maersk Line terminates Mediterranean-Middle East loop

Data from BlueWater Reporting illustrates how the termination of the ME5 service will decrease the Danish carrier’s weekly deployed capacity from the Mediterranean to the Middle East by 12.2 percent.    Ocean carrier Maersk Line will terminate its ME5 between the Mediterranean, Middle East, Indian Subcontinent and Africa in October. The Danish carrier will, however, will add calls to its existing ME1, ME2 and ME3 services in an effort to ensure port coverage in the region.
   According to ocean carrier schedule and capacity database BlueWater Reporting, the ME5, which commenced sailing in Jan. 2015, has a rotation of Algeciras, Valencia, Genoa, Port Said, Aqaba, Jeddah, Djibouti, Salalah, Colombo, Chennai/Madras, Colombo, Salalah, Jeddah, Aqaba, Damietta and Algeciras.
   The loop operates with seven vessels with an average capacity of 4,529 TEUs. Maersk Line provides the vessels for the ME5 with Safmarine as a slot purchaser.
   Although Maersk Line has not announced what calls will be added to the ME1, ME2 and ME3 loops, its schedules were updated this week to reflect new calls.
   The ME1 will add a call at Algeciras with the Oct. 18 sailing of the Maersk Kiel from Felixstowe, according to Maersk Line’s online service schedules. The revised port rotation will be Felixstowe, Antwerp, Bremerhaven, Wilhelmshaven, Rotterdam, Algeciras, Aqaba, Jeddah, Dubai, Mumbai (Nhava Sheva), Mundra, Salalah, Jeddah, Tanger and Felixstowe. The service will continue to operate with eight vessels, all from Maersk, with have an average capacity of 6,747 TEUs. Subsidiary line’s Safmarine and Seago Line purchase slots on the ME1.
   The ME2 has added a westbound call at Salalah and a westbound (return) call at Aqaba with the Sept. 5 sailing of the Maersk Taikung from Malta. The revised port rotation is Malta, Tangiers, Algeciras, Valencia, Barcelona, Genoa, Port Said, Jeddah, Salalah, Dubai, Dammam, Jubail, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Salalah, Jeddah, Aqaba, Port Said and Malta.
   The ME2 continues to operate with seven Maersk vessels with an average vessel capacity of 8,224 TEUs, with Safmarine as a slot taker.
   Maersk’s ME3 service will change rotation with the Oct. 24 sailing of the Maersk Euphrates from Novorossiysk, adding an eastbound (departure) call at Port Said and an eastbound call at Salalah. The revised port rotation will be Novorossiysk, Ambarli (Istanbul), Izmit, Izmir, Mersin, Iskenderun, Port Said, Jeddah, Salalah, Dubai, Pipavav, Hazira, Mumbai (Nhava Sheva), Dubai, Salalah, Damietta, Mersin, Ambarli (Istanbul), Izmit and Novorossiysk.
   The ME3 will continue to operate with eight Maersk vessels with an average capacity of 5,544 TEUs and Safmarine purchasing slots.
   In addition, the Danish carrier said it will launch a feeder service between Chennai, Colombo and Salalah.
    The adjacent chart, which displays the top five carriers in terms of weekly deployed capacity from the Mediterranean to the Middle East and Indian subcontinent, illustrates the impact of the termination of the ME5 on Maersk’s market share in the trade. According to the data, which was gathered using BlueWater Reporting’s Carrier Trade Route Deployment Report, once the ME5 ceases operations, the Danish carrier will deploy 12.2 percent less capacity on the trade.
   Maersk Line’s fellow 2M Alliance partner MSC deploys the most capacity on the trade each week at 58,009 TEUs. Maersk Line, currently deploys 31,904 TEUs each week towards the trade. Following the termination of the ME5, Maersk will move from second place to third place in the trade as its weekly deployed capacity will decrease to 28,022 TEUs. CMA CGM currently comes in third, deploying 30,958 TEUs a week. CSCL and Hapag-Lloyd, which come in fourth and fifth, deploy 11,974 TEUs a week and 11,915 TEUs a week between the Mediterranean and Middle East/ISC, respectively.
   CMA CGM and CSCL are both members of the Ocean3 Alliance, which also includes UASC.
   Hapag-Lloyd is a member of the G6 Alliance, which also includes HMM, MOL, NYK and OOCL and APL.
   Carrier alliances do not cooperate on the Mediterranean to Middle East/ISC trade, as they only cooperate on major east-west trades, but some of the weekly deploed capacity in the trade does belong to alliance loops serving the Asia-Mediterranean trade.
   In sum, a total of 17 carriers deploy a total of 196,068 TEUs through 23 container shipping services from the Mediterranean to the Middle East/ISC each week, according to BlueWater Reporting’s Carrier Trade Route Deployment Report and Capacity Report.