Hamburg Sud slot charter deal ups frequency on MGX service

HAMBURG Sud is to replace its current Med-Caribbean service through a slot charter agreement with Hapag-Lloyd's MGX service, allowing greater frequencies while maintaining current coverage of ports in the Mediterranean, the Gulf Coast of Mexico and Atlantic/Gulf Coast of the US.

The new integrated Mediterranean Mexican Gulf Express (MMGX service) will be operated with six 3,200-TEU ships on the following rotation: Cagliari, Livorno, Genoa, Barcelona, Alencia, Port Everglades, Veracruz, Altamira, Houston, New Orleans, Cagliari.

Subject to Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) filing approval the first sailing of the MMGX service will be the Barcelona Express, sailing Livorno on March 2.

Hamburg Sud will also upgrade its Intra Caribbean Feeder service (ITFS) to two vessels calling on a weekly fixed-day basis at Cartagena, Puerto Limon, Santo Tomas de Castilla, Kingston, Rio Haina and back to Cartagena.

Simultaneously, it will open a new weekly service connecting the hub in Cartagena with Barranquilla, Colombia and San Juan, Puerto Rico with its first sailing in early March. The changes will allow for a more complete and comprehensive coverage of the Caribbean Basin, connecting Hamburg Sud's worldwide network of services through the Cartagena hub.

Source: www.schednet.com