New Red Sea Services Launched

According to Seatrade Maritime News, global line Ocean Network Express (ONE) and regional player SeaLead have announced new services calling at ports in, or at the entrance to, the Red Sea.

Ocean Network Express (ONE) said is launching a new weekly service Red Sea Gulf India 2 (RG2). The new service calls Mundra, Jebel Ali, Jeddah, Sohkna, and Aqaba.

The new service will provide additional coverage as well as increasing connectivity and frequency to the Red Sea, on top of ONE’s existing Red Sea Gulf India Service (RGI).

The largest container lines, including ONE, have rerouted nearly all their long-haul services between Asia – Europe/ Med and the US East Coast via the Cape of Good Hope due to the security situation in the Red Sea and to avoid the threat of Houthi attack.

ONE has also suspended its Asia Red Sea 1 service which normally connects Northeast Asia and Red Sea via Southeast Asia.

However, for trades within the Middle East region to Red Sea ports there are few other viable options than to continue sailing through the Red Sea.

Regional player SeaLead is one of those that has continued to sail through the Red Sea and has add3d a new Far East India Djibouti (FID) service that starts on September 05, 2024.

New service calls Djibouti which is on the African shore of the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, a narrow waterway at the southern entrance to the Red Sea where the Houthi in Yemen have launched attacks on commercial ships transiting the waters since last November.

Suleyman Avci, Global Chief Executive Officer at SeaLead, said, "This service is a strategic step forward, enhancing our capabilities in China, India, and East Africa. By leveraging Djibouti's crucial maritime hub, which connects the Red Sea, we are providing greater coverage and ensuring faster, more reliable connections for our customers, solidifying SeaLead's role in shaping global trade."

The FID service originates in Shanghai, calling Ningbo, Nansha, Port Klang, Colombo, Nhava Sheva, and Mundra before reaching Djibouti.

According to SeaLead’s website it operates an India – Turkiye service, Turkiye – Red Sea that connects to the Port of Jeddah, and a China – East Asia – Turkiye route, all of which transit the Red Sea.

 

What caused fire at ship at Jebel Ali?

Unconfirmed reports suggest that the explosion and subsequent fire on board a container ship anchored at the quay side in Jebel Ali was caused by a container load of fireworks. The ship, thought to be the 210 teu Ocean Trader owned by Sash Shipping Group, based in Dubai endured a loud explosion that shook buildings in the city.

An industry source said that the vessel was a feeder ship and the cargo would have been transshipment freight. He suggested the vessel had called at a number of ports in the Gulf and at Karachi in Pakistan before arriving in Jebel Ali.

Dubai media office Director General, Mona Al Marri said, “The fire at Dubai’s Jebel Ali port was caused by an explosion from a ‘normal accident’ in a container holding flammable material.”

After the explosion, emergency services quickly brought the fire under control – in less than an hour, according to a Jebel Ali Port statement.

Director General of Dubai Civil Defense Maj Gen Rashid Thani Al Matrooshi confirmed the fire was fully under control and the cooling process is under way.

No deaths or injuries were reported and the security company Dryad Global, investigating early reports that Israel had retaliated following last week’s attack on the CSAV Tyndall in the ongoing Israel/Iran shadow war, was adamant that there was no military involvement. “It is not how they [the Israeli armed forces] would target a vessel or Iran,” said a spokesman.

Jebel Ali port is owned and operated by the Dubai-based DP world. The port is located at the northern tip of Dubai and has 4 tumbling container terminals that can dock some of the largest vessels present globally. This busiest American warship's port of call outside the US is the largest established deep-water harbor on the globe.

DP world often describes the Jebel Ali port as the lifeline for Dubai and "gateway hub", as it has some vital links connecting the eastern and western markets, serving as the point of entry to the global trade network. The state-run company didn't issue any public declaration immediately after the explosion.