COSCO ADDS ASIA/PACIFIC NORTHWEST SERVICE

COSCO ADDS ASIA/PACIFIC NORTHWEST SERVICE    COSCO Container Lines has introduced an extra weekly container service between Asia and Pacific Northwest ports of Canada and the U.S.
   The Pacific Northwest service, launched in mid-May in Asia, calls at Shanghai, Chiwan, Hong Kong, Yokohama, Vancouver, Seattle and Shanghai.
   The first sailing of the service, the “Ling Yun He,” is scheduled to arrive in Vancouver on May 30.
   In a related change, COSCO is revising its existing “SEA” transpacific service, by dropping eastbound calls at Chiwan and Yokohama. Those calls form part of the new Pacific Northwest service.
   The new operation utilizes vessels of about 1,700-TEU capacity. Some of the vessels come from COSCO’s discontinued Mediterranean/New York/Halifax “Genyex” service.
   An executive of COSCO Container Lines in Shanghai said that COSCO will operate the Pacific Northwest service on its own, without any slot charter agreements.
   The addition of COSCO’s service will increase transpacific capacity by about 90,000 TEUs a year in each direction.
   COSCO’s Pacific Northwest operation is one of five new transpacific services commenced by ocean carriers between April and June before the start of the peak season. The Grand Alliance has introduced its Far East Express and East Coast Express services; the New World Alliance of APL, Hyundai and MOL is launching a PSV service; and Maersk Sealand has resumed its TP5 service.