The Hindu Business Line : New India service from French container line

CMA CGM, the French container line, has snapped its ties with Super Galex consortium and launched its own independent service connecting India with Far Eastern ports on the one hand and West Asian ports on the other. The maiden voyage, to be undertaken by the vessel, Ville de Mars, is to start from Ningbo from Monday (July 24).

The new service, named Cimex (China/India/Middle East Express), to be operated by five vessels of the capacity of 2,500 TEUs each, will have the following port rotation: Ningbo-Shanghai-Fuing-Chiwan-Port Kelang-Nhava Sheva International Container Terminal-Jebel Ali-Khor Fakkan-Bandar Abbas-Port Kelang-Ningbo. The distance between Chiwan and NSICT is to be completed in 10 days.

Meanwhile, the present Super Galex consortium members — CSAV Norasia, Hanjin Shipping and Laurel Navigation — the subsidiary of Israeli line, Zim, too have changed their port rotation. "We are now focusing on imports to India," a spokesman for the consortium told Business Line, pointing out that some of the north China ports earlier covered by the Super Galex service had been skipped under the new rotation and NSICT would be covered before Jebel Ali, Karachi and Mundra. Also, the services used to terminate earlier at Ningbo, but not any more. The new port rotation will be: Shanghai-Ningbo-Chiwan-Singapore-Colombo-NSICT-Jebel Ali- Karachi-Mundra-Singapore-Hong Kong-Shanghai. Five ships - two each by CSAV Norasia and Laurel Navigation and one by Hanjin Shipping and each of the capacity of 2,800 TEUs— are being deployed on the service.