MSC, Maersk to discontinue Far East-Black Sea string

The ocean carriers’ decision to withdraw the joint Great Sea/AE3 service is due to low demand out of Asia; service to Black Sea will be maintained through transhipment.    Ocean carriers Mediterranean Shipping Co. and Maersk will discontinue a service between Asia and Black Sea ports during the first week of November, according to a statement from the company.
   The service is one of the offerings by the 2M Alliance of MSC and Maersk Line. MSC calls it the Great Sea service, while Maersk designates it the AE3.
   Maersk said it would merge the AE3 loop with its AE15 service.
   “This will result in a downscale of nine 5,500 TEU (nominal) vessels,” said Maersk. “We are dedicated to continuously serve our customers on this trade and will establish a comprehensive feeder setup to cater for all the Black Sea markets.”
   “The decision to withdraw this service is due to unexpectedly low demand out of Asia. We have to adapt our capacity to the demand in these difficult times,” said Caroline Becquart, senior vice president of MSC. “While current demand is not sufficient to meet the costs of running a dedicated service, we are committed to provide solutions for our customers.”
   MSC said it will offer a transshipment service to “maintain our customers’ supply chain and our commitment to the area.” The Black Sea region will be served by transshipping Asia cargo in Asyaport, which is located in Barbaros, Tekirdağ, Turkey.
   The Great Sea service is the eastern half of a pendulum loop. After returning from the Black Sea to call at Far East ports, ships continue to sail eastward to North America, calling at the ports of Seattle and Vancouver. They then turn around and sail west, calling Far East ports before continuing on to the Black Sea. MSC calls the transpacific portion of the pendulum service the “Eagle,” while Maersk calls it the TP9.
   According to ocean carrier schedule and capacity database BlueWater Reporting, the combined loops previously operated with 15 ships with average capacity of 5,014 TEUs.
   A spokeswoman told American Shipper MSC will continue to operate the Eagle service as a standard transpacific loop.
   “There will be no impact on the trade to Seattle and Vancouver,” she said. “If anything, it will become a regular loop service meaning that the service will have improved transit times.”
   The new port rotation for the Eagle service will be Hong Kong, Yantian, Shanghai, Busan, Vancouver, Seattle, Yokohama, Busan, Shanghai, and Hong Kong. The loop will be operated with six 5,000-TEU ships.