Oregon's direct marine line to Europe, Hapag-Lloyd, officially pulls out of Portland

© Khunaspix Dreamstime.

And so it came to pass: the protracted labour dispute between the port of Portland, the ILWU, terminal operator ICTSI Portland and what appeared to be a range of other interests at various points in a two-year saga, has finally broken the will of Hapag-Lloyd, leaving Portland with just niche operator Westwood a one call per month at most. Hapag-Lloyd confirmed this morning it was joining Hanjin in ceasing to call at the port, dealing a massive blow for the region’s shippers who had relied on it as their principal export node. We wonder what effect the redirected volumes will have on either the port congestion clear-up efforts, as well as inland box availability.