Maersk, a Danish shipping giant, is intensifying its operations in the Indian subcontinent and Middle East to address challenges in the Red Sea and Suez Canal areas. The company plans to launch a weekly service from Chennai and introduce a new Arabian Sea service.
Starting February 5, a new container service will be launched between India, Sri Lanka, and the Middle East. The rotation will be Salalah (Oman), Colombo (Sri Lanka), Ennore (India), Colombo, and back to Salalah. In Colombo, Maersk will offer connections to Europe via its AE7 service and to the Far East through its AE55 service. Both services have connections to North Europe via West Mediterranean hubs.
As the Red Sea/Gulf of Aden situation continues, Maersk is striving to maintain capacity and improve the reliability of supply chains. A new service, the Arabian Sea Service, is also being introduced. This service will rotate between Salalah, Jebel Ali (UAE), Port Qasim (Pakistan), Pipavav (India), Nhava Sheva (India), and back to Salalah. The first sailing under this service, the GSL Kalliopi, will depart from Salalah on February 9.
Maersk is also launching new weekly services connecting the Mediterranean and Red Sea. The Gulf Service will serve Salalah, Jebel Ali, Doha (Qayar), Damma (Saudi Arabia), Al Jubayl (Saudi Arabia), Jebel Ali, Abu Dhabi (UAE), Duqm (Oman), and back to Salalah. The first sailing, the San Clemente, will depart from Salalah on February 5.
Source: thehindubusinessline.com