Gemini alliance partners Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd have set the stage to serve shippers on the India-US trade, a market that was not part of the contours of the original collaborative agreement specifically tied to direct calls.

The carriers will alternatively use feeder connections to relay Indian loads to the US East and West coasts over Gemini hub ports in Asia.

Those extended coverage plans, known as of now, include Hapag-Lloyd acquiring slots on an existing Maersk intra-Asia loop and adding another regional string for US transshipment options.

The former service, to be marketed by Hapag-Lloyd as the India-Asia Express (IAX), features a rotation of Mundra, Singapore, Qingdao, Tianjin, Xingang and Busan, but the cooperation beginning in mid-February will be restricted to export loading rights out of Mundra.

“This service [IAX] will connect to our Gemini shuttle network via our hubs to attractive other locations in North America and Asia,” Hapag-Lloyd said in a customer advisory. “In fact, the cargo bound to North America will connect at Qingdao and Busan.”

Similarly, Hapag-Lloyd will open Indian bookings to the US West Coast region via its India-China (CIX) Service, which has thus far concentrated on shipments from Taiwan to West India on the back of more competitive transits. Intra-Asia operators traditionally thrive on the backhaul trade to India.

“From late April or early May, the CIX calling Nhava Sheva and Hazira will load for the [North American] West Coast, including Los Angeles, Oakland, Tacoma and Vancouver, via transshipment at Singapore and/or Shanghai,” a liner industry official with knowledge of the matter told the Journal of Commerce. “The Gemini alliance is driving multiple cargo relay opportunities with enhanced schedule reliability.”

The current CIX itinerary includes stops at Colombo, Nhava Sheva, Port Klang, Singapore, Kaohsiung, Hong Kong and Shekou, available data shows.

Both Hapag-Lloyd and Maersk already have standalone direct West India-US East Coast connections, known as the TPI and MECL services, respectively. The latter has also been upgraded with a new call at Mundra beginning in late February in a schedule reshuffle that Maersk claims will improve transit times for Indian shippers to the East Coast by five days on average.

Meanwhile, Maersk has begun accepting spot bookings on its portal for Gemini Europe sailings, while Hapag-Lloyd is expected to open its spot window for Indian customers on the network from Jan. 24, local forwarder sources said.

Source:  Journal of Commerce 

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