The Jacksonville Port Authority (JAXPORT) recently marked the inaugural ship call of the Suez Canal Bridge, part of a new rotation of weekly calls at JAXPORT's TraPac Container Terminal at Dames Point.
The new all-water service, jointly operated by TraPac parent company, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd. and K Line, will expedite the movement of cargo from major Asian ports to key destinations on the U.S. East Coast, via the Suez Canal.
The SVE (South China/Vietnam–the U.S. East Coast) service is made up of two MOL ships and seven K Line ships, with an average capacity of approximately 5,500 twenty-foot equivalents (TEUs). MOL's alliance partners, Hyundai and APL, as well as K Line and its partners—COSCO, Hanjin and Yang Ming—will make use of the new service.
The introduction of the SVE service will enable MOL to offer direct connections from Vietnam/South China/Singapore to the U.S. East Coast, including the weekly call at JAXPORT. This is the third regular weekly rotation that will call on the TraPac terminal.
JAXPORT now has eight carriers offering direct service to the Far East.
The Suez Canal Bridge left the Port of Shekou, China, in mid-May and visited Yantian (China), Singapore, Halifax, New York and Norfolk before arriving in Jacksonville. The ship will travel to Savannah and Singapore before arriving back in Cai Mep, Vietnam.