TCC ups capacity, scraps slow-steaming to reposition boxes

THE Containership Company (TCC) is increasing capacity and temporarily suspending slow-steaming on its Taicang-Los Angeles Great Dragon shuttle.

TCC's service currently deploys five ships ranging from 2,500-3,000 TEU, but from the end of July/early August, it will run the operation with four 3,000-TEU ships. It has agreed to charter three vessels of 2,932 TEU from Danaos Shipping, which will be part of the new line-up, reports Containerisation International.

Thereafter the capacity will be raised from 2,829-TEU to 2,953 TEU a week.

TCC chief executive Jakob Tolstrup-Moller said the decision to temporarily suspend slow steaming, will cut transit time by a few days to speed badly needed containers back to China. The carrier was also removing one ship from the present line-up, which would be deployed on a new service. Slow steaming will probably resume later this year, he said.

Mr Tolstrup-Moller said TCC was looking to launch a new service this year, and said that Yangtze River Delta port of Taicang would be on the rotation.

"We will absolutely use Taicang; our customers want more. What is good about Taicang is that it is very close to the cargo sources, which means that the manufacturers are very close to the ships, so they are able to load and get their cargo out very efficiently. This is the pattern that we have," he said.
(Source:www.schednet.com)