Evergreen Line

March 03, 2015

In light of the strong growth potential of the Intra-Asia trades, Evergreen Line is implementing service enhancements for its services to/from Southeast Asian markets. The carrier will launch its new Taiwan–Shekou–Malacca Strait Service (TSS) later in March and will, at the same time, introduce a dedicated Taiwan – Hong Kong Service (THK).

Evergreen will deploy three ships of 1,600 TEU on the TSS service, connecting Taiwan, Southern China, Singapore and Malaysia. The start of this weekly service will be marked by the inaugural sailing from Kaohsiung on the 19th of March. The port rotation will then follow as Hong Kong – Shekou – Port Klang – Penang – Port Klang – Singapore – Tanjung Pelepas – Kaohsiung.

This new service string will not only provide an efficient link for regional trade but also connect into the global networks of Evergreen Line and its alliance partners via hubs at Kaohsiung, Hong Kong, Singapore and Tanjung Pelepas.

In addition, this month will see the start of the THK Service. Employing a 1,200 TEU vessel, the weekly service will have a port rotation of Taichung, Taipei, Kaohsiung, Hong Kong and Taichung with its maiden voyage from Hong Kong on the 25th of March.

The goals of this move are to improve service frequency between Taiwan and Hong Kong and to increase connectivity to Evergreen’s global network. Moreover the service will provide a ‘Blue Way’ coastal feeder option between Taichung, Taipei and Kaohsiung, thereby significantly reducing the demand for trucking across Taiwan. This arrangement is in line with Evergreen’s environmental policy to contribute to the sustainability of natural environment.

December 8, 2014

In order to offer a more comprehensive service to shippers and importers in the Philippines, Evergreen Line is to team up with Cheng Lie Navigation (CNC) to launch the new China-Philippines Service (CPH ).

Two ships of around 1,000 TEU will be deployed on the new weekly service, one each operated by the joint service partners.   The first sailing on the CPH service will be from Shanghai on the 11^th of December and the  port rotation is as follows:

Shanghai – Ningbo – Xiamen – Shekou – Manila (south harbour) –Shanghai.

The new service is in addition to the four feeder loops, which Evergreen offers serving the Philippines.  This comprehensive coverage of all major ports in the Philippines, includes Manila (both north and south harbours), Cebu, Davao and General Santos, etc.  All services connect to Evergreen’s global network via either Kaohsiung and/or Hong Kong.

According to statistics published by China’s General Administration of Customs, the amount of bilateral trade between China and ASEAN (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) increased by 8.9% during the first ten months of 2014.  In particular, China’s imports and exports to/from the Philippines showed an even stronger growth of 17.1%.

ASEAN member states have held several rounds of trade talks with China, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Australia and India for Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and aimed to conclude the negotiations by the end of 2015. As a positive indication of future trade growth, this initiative is expected to significantly benefit the further development of Intra-Asia trades.

December 26, 2014

Evergreen Group today held the naming ceremony for EVER LUNAR, the seventh of its L-type vessels to be built by CSBC Corporation in Taiwan. The ceremony, which was officiated by Ms. Lee-Ching Ko, Second Vice Group Chairman of Evergreen Group, took place at CSBC’s Kaohsiung shipyard.  The official rope-cutting of the new 8,508 TEU vessel was performed by Mrs. Lin, Mei-Chun.

EVER LUNAR is owned by Evergreen Marine Corporation (Taiwan) Ltd. The ship is 334.8 meters in length, 45.8 meters wide and has a draft of 14.2 meters.  In common with its L-type sister ships, EVER LUNAR can cruise at speeds up to 24.5 knots. The ship will be delivered into service in January and join Evergreen Line’s Far East – Arabian Persian Gulf (APG) Service.

Speaking at the ceremony, Ms. Ko said, “Evergreen has taken delivery of six L-type vessels from CSBC, assisting in our on-going fleet renewal program, which is enhancing our competitiveness and operating performance. The name of this new ship is symbolic of a shining outlook for the container shipping market.  We are confident that our business can benefit from recent forecast of market growth and that such momentum will contribute to an increase in  profitability .”

Evergreen Line commenced its fleet renewal program in 2010. The project entailed ordering twenty L-type vessels from Samsung Heavy Industries and another ten units of the same specifications from CSBC. The Samsung building program was concluded in July this year. The delivery of EVER LUNAR will add the 27^th such vessel to Evergreen’s operating fleet. The remaining three ships will be delivered by the third quarter of 2015 and be balanced by the redelivery of vessels currently on charter when the charter periods expire.

In addition to the fleet renewal program, Evergreen is consolidating its service cooperation with strategic partners, including those in the CKYHE alliance to provide a more comprehensive service and to strengthen its competitiveness.

In order to offer a more comprehensive service to shippers and importers in the Philippines, Evergreen Line is to team up with Cheng Lie Navigation (CNC) to launch the new China-Philippines Service (CPH ).

Evergreen Line is to partner with Mariana Express in launching a joint South China – East Malaysia (SEM) Service.  The new initiative will give a significant boost to the service offered to shippers on this important sector of the Intra-Asian trade.  

The SEM service will employ two ships with around 1,000 teu capacity each. Sailings will be weekly and follow the port rotation: Shekou – Hong Kong – Kota Kinabalu (Malaysia) – Muara (Brunei) – Bintulu (Malaysia) – Shekou.  The first sailing is planned to depart from Shekou on the 10th of September.

As part of its on-going efforts to improve network connections in this region, Evergreen Line will also take space on Interasia Lines’ Singapore – Yangon (Burma) – Malaysia (SYM) service based on a slot swap arrangement.  Providing Evergreen customers with an additional feeder connection to Yangon, the SYM loop will call at Singapore, Yangon, Port Klang, Yangon and then back to Singapore.

The ASEAN countries, made up of South-east Asian states, boast some of the world’s highest forecast rates of economic growth currently.  In 2014 the ASEAN economy as a whole looks set to grow by 4.6% and for 2015 the estimate is 5.6% growth according to the IMF’s World Economic Outlook report published in July.

The ASEAN community recently set as a priority the successful conclusion of negotiations with China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand to establish the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).  It is believed that this significant development will further encourage free trade and have the effect of driving cargo growth within the Intra-Asia trade.

July 28, 2014

The global container carrier, Evergreen Line has announced enhancements to its services to/from Dublin (Ireland) and Liverpool (Northwest England).  From its hub in Rotterdam the line will offer a twice-weekly service to Dublin and dedicated slots on a weekly basis to Liverpool.

The move is designed to more effectively integrate the line’s services to/from the North of England and Ireland with its extensive global network.  Evergreen will run its own independent service on a weekly shuttle basis between Rotterdam and Dublin and will also commence a slot exchange arrangement with common carrier X-PRESS feeders on its weekly Dublin service from Rotterdam.

As part of the same slot exchange Evergreen will additionally take space on the X-PRESS weekly service to Liverpool, also connecting to deep-sea line-haul service via the line’s Rotterdam hub.

Evergreen sees the combination of its own vessel operation together with exclusive use of slots on a well-established feeder service as a significant improvement to the service it can deliver to its customers in two very important regions of trade.  The arrangement meets both customer demands for regular and reliable service to Northwest UK and Ireland and cost-effective operational parameters.

Overall transit times to and from both ports will be enhanced and there will be an increased ability to coordinate the trans-shipment of cargo at Rotterdam.  In addition to allowing its customer base on Merseyside and in the Republic of Ireland greater access to its worldwide service network, Evergreen believes the new initiative will also better serve other regions of the UK, including the North of England, Midlands and Scotland.  With road transport becoming increasingly susceptible to unforeseen delays, customers requiring a more carbon-free approach to transport and fuel costs ever a consideration, Evergreen believes the short-sea option to be an important one to develop.

The Evergreen operated Vega Stockholm has a capacity of 698TEU and is due to make the inaugural sailing on the Dublin service from Rotterdam on 30th July.  The slot arrangement on both X-PRESS services to Dublin and Liverpool will commence in the same week.

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