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Mainline carriers seem to be left with little choice out of India but to redeploy capacity in regional shuttle services, as the Middle East crisis hobbles their long-haul schedules.
Hapag-Lloyd is said to be considering an ad-hoc shuttle service from India’s western Kandla Port to the UAE, replicating what CMA CGM has already done to ease supply chain disruption to the Middle East trade.
The German carrier has dedicated terminal capacity and operational flexibility at Kandla because of its joint-venture with JM Baxi. Through Hanseat Global Terminals (HGT), Hapag-Lloyd owns 40% of JM Baxi Ports & Logistics.
The shuttle is expected to connect Kandla to Khor Fakkan and/or Fujairah, according to industry sources.
The move follows one of Hapag-Lloyd’s large vessels, Seaspan Ganges, making a call at nearby Pipavav Port to drop Middle East boxes, claimed to be the largest containership visit the APM Terminal-operated facility.
“The call delivered an impressive 4,512 moves/8,454 teu safely and seamlessly, with a berth productivity of 120 moves per hour,” Pipavav Port said.
Sources believe some of these rerouted boxes would be relocated to Kandla for onward movement to the Gulf by shuttle operations.
Last July, Hapag-Lloyd began a Kandla shuttle on a rotation connecting to Jebel Ali (UAE)-Shuaiba-Shuwaikh (Kuwait)-Jebel Ali-Kandla, with a weekly capacity of some 550 teu. But the Middle East chaos is believed to have complicated or halted this operation.
Additionally, the carrier is understood to have set up a slot deal with UAE-based feeder line Gulftainer Lines, which is offering multiple weekly sailings out of western India to Khor Fakkan, market updates indicate.
Signalling that involvement, Hapag-Lloyd said it would apply an emergency operational recovery surcharge on boxes handled at Khor Fakkan, in tandem with a levy implemented by Gulftainer. The $100-per-box surcharge began yesterday for all trades, except FMC-regulated cargo that typically has a 30-day filing requirement.
Meanwhile, in another attempt to consolidate its regional trade aspirations, CMA CGM is to register a fifth containership in India, which is expected to boost its competitive profile in the market. The 2,592-teu CMA CGM Vila Do Conde is currently flagged in Malta, according to industry sources.
The Marseille-based carrier debuted Indian box tonnage with the CMA CGM Vitoria, the same size and same registration history, which was reflagged a year ago. Other reflaggings to India include CMA CGM Manaus and CMA CGM Diamond, data shows.
Containership reflagging by major carriers in India gained some momentum over the past year, after New Delhi liberalised tonnage tax policies and introduced other incentives, with CMA CGM making the first move, followed by Maersk and MSC.
“This underscores CMA CGM’s commitment to India and its ambition to develop its presence in the country,” it said.
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