Wan Hai and PIL return to Asia Europe trade

Source:PR News Service

Wan Hai Lines and Pacific International Lines (PIL) are to return to the Asia/North Europe less than a year after departing the trade because of the market downturn

PR News Service can exclusively reveal that through a slot purchase deal with COSCO Container Lines (COSCON), both Wan Hai and PIL will make their Asia/Europe re-entry with the first westbound sailing expected to arrive in Rotterdam around November 6th right as the so-called slack season for the trade starts to take effect

The unexpected move, which has taken many lines involved in the trade by complete surprise, will entail an agreement that sees Wan Hai and PIL purchase around 600 teu per week on the CKYH NE 1 service, which is tonnaged by COSCON and Hanjin

The slot purchase deal is purely with COSCON, and does not involve the other three lines in the CKYH Alliance, K Line, Yangming and Hanjin

Details of the NE1 service which is one of the new products coming out the CKYH Alliance Asia/Europe and Asia/Med restructuring (see earlier Copy) covers the following ports :

Ningbo, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Nansha, Rotterdam, Hamburg, Felixstowe, Antwerp, Singapore, Ningbo

However, according to inside sources, the Felixstowe call will not, at the moment, be part of the new slot agreement

It will be recalled that both Wan Hai and PIL have moved through the Asia/Europe and Asia/Med market turmoil over recent months from operating their own service to a slot deal with the CKYH lines that ended at the beginning of this year when the market downturn really began to bite

On the departure from that deal, the slot allocation to the lines was understood to be around 400/500 teu - now the two lines are back with an even bigger allocation