Maersk, MSC publish details on 2M routes

Maersk says its East-West shipping network will be monitored through a joint coordination center.    Maersk Line and MSC has released further information about their planned 2M Vessel Sharing Agreement on the major East-West trades between the Far East, Asia and Europe.
   According to the promotional material posted on their websites, the two companies will offer six weekly services between North America and Asia, five weekly services between North America and Europe, and 11 weekly services between Europe and Asia. In addition, Maersk said it will also offer a service, the TA4, between Canada and North Europe that will not be a part of the 2M agreement with MSC.
   The 2M agreement, announced earlier this year, is a scaled-back agreement of a three-way alliance that Maersk and MSC had proposed entering into with France’s CMA CGM. That tripartite alliance was dropped after objections were raised by Chinese regulators, in part because of the large market share it would have created, along with its proposed vessel-operations center.
   Maersk said in a brochure that 2M will “allow for higher economies of scale and are able to increase port coverage and frequency.” But it also said that its East-West network “will be monitored through a joint coordination center. This center is a crucial component of our product offering, as it will continue to uphold Maersk Line’s commitment to innovation by vigilantly monitoring operational execution, ensuring joint working procedures are followed in the best interest of our customers.”
   Maersk said, “The joint coordination center will monitor the network on a daily basis with maintenance of joint working procedures. That said, all ownership, marine operations, operational decisions as well as commercial activities remain with each respective carrier. Meaning, the ocean product will run in a uniform manner, but the service you have come to count on from our people remains unique to us.”