News / Wan Hai partners with ONE for revamped Asia Pacific service

Photo: VesselFinder

Amid a suggestion that Wan Hai Lines could be a substitute for Hapag-Lloyd in THE Alliance, the Taiwanese operator today announced a Asia-US west coast service jointly with THEA member ONE.

Marketed by ONE as the Asia Pacific 1, it involves revamping Wan Hai’s AA3 service, which calls at Cai Mep, Shekou, Xiamen, Taipei, Shanghai, Ningbo, Long Beach, Oakland, Shekou and Cai Mep, to include calls at Hai Phong and Los Angeles.

Wan Hai will contribute five 13,000 teu ships, while ONE will assign two similar-sized vessels.

Originally an intra-Asia carrier, Wan Hai launched transpacific services in 2020 and, despite the correction in freight rates post-pandemic, has remained committed to the long-haul market – adding it was open to starting Asia-Europe services.

The company said today its revenue in January went up nearly 11% on December, to TW$9.25bn ($295m).

Wan Hai said: “Due to the tense situation in the Red Sea and the market demand before the lunar new year, freight rates and volume of both deepsea and shortsea services increased, compared with the previous month. We will observe the resumption of factory operations after the new year, and then adjust our routes accordingly.”

Last Friday, with the start of China’s new year holiday, transpacific rates eased, following ten straight weeks of increases, but Shanghai-US west coast rates remain just below $5,000 per 40ft, compared with around $1,300 in February last year.

Linerlytica noted that shippers had been opting to send goods to the US via the west coast to ensure deliveries are not delayed by the problems at the Panama and Suez canals.

The Wan Hai-ONE collaboration coincides with a suggestion by Yang Ming’s ex-chairman, Bronson Hsieh, that Wan Hai could take Hapag-Lloyd’s place in THE Alliance in January 2025, when it leaves to form the Gemini Cooperation with Maersk.

Wan Hai’s spokesperson told The Loadstar that while joining an alliance was an option, it had various joint services to boost its network.

However, Wan Hai’s fleet of 590,000 teu would limit the operator’s contribution to THE Alliance to transpacific services.