News / Wan Hai to increase capacity and services on growing regional routes

Photo: VesselFinder

Amid US-China tensions, Taiwan shipping line Wan Hai is looking to add capacity to growing regional trades, such as intra-Asia and India-Europe, general manager Tommy Hsieh told shareholders at the company’s AGM yesterday

“In April, in response to growing trade between Vietnam, Thailand, and India, we started the TTX, a new direct route from Vietnam and Thailand to the Indian east coast,” he said.

“This month, with ONE and Regional Container Lines (RCL), we started the CS2 service from China to Indonesia and Malaysia, and in June, we’re launching an India-east Mediterranean service with Emirates Shipping Line (ESL).

“These new routes combine with the existing service network to build faster and more intensive route transportation,” he explained.

Mr Hsieh noted that after US President Donald Trump unleashed the “Liberation Day” tariffs in early April, shipments from South-east Asia to the US increased significantly, while intra-Asia freight rates increased by more than 30%, year on year.

He explained that, while the initial round of tariffs slashed ex-China shipments to the US, it did not completely eradicate these volumes, and shipping lines would adjust their vessel deployment accordingly.

Intra-Asia shipping contributed 40% of Wan Hai’s revenue and, annual transpacific contract rates increasing by 30% to 40%, compared with last year, ensured a stable turnover for the carrier.

Wan Hai, which achieved a $2.6bn profit in 2024 – reversing 2023’s $188.5m loss – declared a dividend of TW$3.50 ($0.12) per share.

Mr Hsieh also discussed Wan Hai’s newbuild buying spree, and said the new ships would replace older and less fuel-efficient vessels to boost competitiveness.

In April, Wan Hai placed an order for two 16,000 teu vessels at each of HD Hyundai Samho and Samsung Heavy Industries, in South Korea. And this year will take delivery of three 13,000 teu ships, with another 34 arriving from shipyards between 2026 and 2030.

In total, these will add 380,000 teu to Wan Hai’s fleet.

One of the new 13,000 teu ships, Wan Hai A19, was named yesterday in Taiwan, and is scheduled to be deployed on the Far East-South America West Coast route Wan Hai operates in cooperation with Cosco, PIL and Evergreen, with Yang Ming participating as a slot charterer.

According to the eeSea liner database, the service, which Wan Hai markets as the ASA string, deploys 11 vessels with an average capacity of 11,800 teu – Wan Hai contributing between five and six ships – and features a port rotation of: Busan-Kaohsiung-Shekou-Hong Kong-Ningbo-Shanghai-Manzanillo (Mexico)-Lazaro Cardenas-Puerto Quetzal-Callao-Guayaquil.