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.

 

Fourth annual ONE Terminal Run

Ocean Network Express (ONE) and Hutchison Ports Gdynia hosted another successful charity run through container rows in Poland last weekend in support of local causes.

The event was put together through the collaborative efforts of Ocean Network Express (ONE), Hutchison Ports Gdynia (GCT) and The North Event, and raised further funds for local charity organizations.

The organizers said the ONE Terminal Run initiative aims to connect members in the maritime industry in the spirit of fundraising and wellbeing.

This year’s race around GCT’s terminal in Gdynia, Poland, welcomed approximately 1,300 runners including children who joined the children’s run, and over 3,000 supporters.

Spectators were invited to join the adult runners in the festivities with a warm up to music before the runners set off on their choice of either a one nautical mile (1.8 km) or 5 km run.

The routes weaved back and forth between rows of stacked containers in the terminal, and the start and finish arches were both spanned by an arch formed of ONE containers.

Monies raised by the run will be donated to local charities and added to the tally of over €33,000 raised by the event series to date. The beneficiaries of funds, that are raised though ticket sales as well as online auctions, include: The Why Not Association, an organization supporting children and youth with disabilities, The Szkwal Foundation, supporting young people at risk, and two local schools supporting children with disabilities.

ONE said previous event donations have provided the local community with amenities including three sensory integration rooms in primary schools in Gdynia, specialized wheelchair equipment for the Cool Awi Association, as well as donations to local schools helping those with disabilities.

Donations are still adding up for the ONE Terminal Run 2024 as the online auction is still open, but to date, the fourth edition has already raised estimated funds of €19,000.

The event was made possible by the generosity of sponsors from the transport. logistics, and maritime industries including; Port of Gdynia Authority, Morska Agencja Gdynia, MacGregor Global, Loconi Intermodal S.A, ECU Worldwide, Uni-logistics Sp. z o.o and E-containers.eu. 

The children's run was sponsored by both and IT Logistics and Nautiqus Food Logistics, which celebrated the participation of almost half of its employees and other mini container trophy for its three-time podium finisher in the adult's race, Dorota.