CKYH Alliance slow steams Asia/Europe loops

CKYH Alliance slow steams Asia/Europe loops    CKYH Alliance carriers COSCO Container Lines, 'K' Line, Yang Ming and Hanjin Shipping said Tuesday that by mid-February they will slow steam four Far East/Europe loops.
   Three of the loops, NE1, NE2 and NE4, connect Asia to northern Europe, while the fourth, MD2, links the Far East to the Mediterranean. The MD2 has been slow steaming since Dec. 7, with the other three due to begin between Wednesday and Feb. 11. The carriers said their other two Asia/Europe services, NE3 and MD1, will also be slow steamed at some point during the first half of 2010.
   According to American Shipper research affiliate ComPair Data, all four services to be slow steamed are each operated with eight vessels. The lines did not specify whether additional ships will be added to the loops to keep to current schedules or whether total transit times for the services will be lengthened.
   The move follows similar measures by nearly every other major alliance and line on the Asia/Europe trade, where slow steaming has been used to cut fuel consumption and soak up excess capacity. Earlier this month, Hanjin said it was slowing a transpacific all-water service to the U.S. East Coast.
   In August, the CKYH Alliance carriers said they would trim 20 percent of capacity from the their six Asia/Europe services.
   The NE1 has a rotation of Ningbo, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Nansha, Rotterdam, Hamburg, Felixtowe, Antwerp, Singapore and Ningbo. It's operated with four vessels each from COSCO and Hanjin, with an average size of 9,892 TEUs. Wan Hai and PIL buy slots on this service. Slow steaming will begin Jan. 28.
   The NE2 has a rotation of Xiamen, Kaohsiung, Yantian, Singapore, Rotterdam, Felixtowe, Hamburg, Antwerp, Jeddah, Hong Kong, Yantian and Xiamen. The service is operated with four vessels each from Yang Ming and 'K' Line, with an average size of 8,171 TEUs. UASC is a slot charterer on this service. Slow steaming will begin Jan. 27.
   The NE4 has a rotation of Gwangyang, Busan, Ningbo, Shanghai, Singapore, Hamburg, Rotterdam, Le Havre, Port Said, Singapore, Hong Kong and Gwanyang. The service is operated with three vessels each from 'K' Line and Yang Ming, and two from COSCO, with an average size of 8,176 TEUs. Slow steaming will begin Feb. 11.
      The MD2 has a rotation of Shanghai, Ningbo, Xiamen, Kaohsiung, Shekou, Singapore, Port Said, Piraeus, Genoa, La Spezia, Barcelona, Valencia, Port Said, Singapore and Shanghai. It's operated with eight Hanjin vessels with an average size of 6,655 TEUs. Slow steaming began Dec. 7. ' Eric Johnson