ALIANCA, DOCENAVE COMBINE MERCOSUR COASTAL SERVICE

ALIANCA, DOCENAVE COMBINE MERCOSUR COASTAL SERVICE    Alian'a Navega''o & Log'stica Ltda. and Navega''o Vale do Rio Doce S.A. said they have formed a new joint service to cover the Mercosur and cabotage trades linking Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina.
   The combined service will deploy seven vessels in two slings on a weekly basis, starting Oct. 29.
   Five vessels with a 35-day rotation will call the ports of    Buenos Aires, Montevideo, Rio Grande, S'o Francisco do Sul, Paranagua, Santos, Sepetiba, Salvador, Suape, Fortaleza, and Manaus, then return calling the ports of Itaqui/Fortaleza (alternate calls), Suape, Salvador, Sepetiba, Santos, S'o Francisco do Sul and Buenos Aires. Asunscion, Paraguay will be served via Buenos Aires.
   Additionally, two vessels with a 14-day rotation will call the ports of Rio Grande, S'o Francisco do Sul Santos, Suape, Maceio, Santos and Rio Grande.
   Alianca said the move to weekly sailings meets a demand of the cabotage marketplace. The expanded reach and frequency of the service “should now help make the concept of feeder service a reality for ports big and small along Brazil’s coastline,” Alianca added.
   Alianca is a subsidiary of the Hamburg-Sud shipping group.