RAZON-LED International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI) said its unit handled the new service of COSCO Shipping Lines, Inc. that will connect South America and Europe.
In a media release on Wednesday, the company said Rio Brasil Terminal (RBT), a part of the ICTSI group, welcomed the inaugural call of the shipping lines’ Europe-East Coast of South America (ESE2) service.
The “Xin Nan Tong” ship docked at RBT on Sept. 15 to launch the ESE2 service.
RBT operates Container Terminal 1 at the Port of Rio de Janeiro and serves the import, export, and industrial oil and gas hubs in the largest economic region of Brazil.
The ESE2 service will serve as a transit connection between the Brazilian states of Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais to Europe, enabling a stable weekly connection “with very competitive transit times” from the East Coast of South America to Europe.
The company said the container service targets refrigerated cargoes out of South America, and the consuming markets of Europe such as the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Belgium.
The ESE2 service covers the following port rotation: Rotterdam (Netherlands) – London Gateway (UK) – Hamburg (Germany) – Antwerp (Belgium) – Lisbon (Portugal) – Algeciras (Spain) – Santos (Brazil) – Paranaguá (Brazil) – Montevideo (Uruguay) – Buenos Aires (Argentina) – Itapoa (Brazil) – Paranagua – Santos – Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) – Algeciras – Rotterdam, with an expected total duration of nine weeks.
The initial fleet will have 4,000-5,000 twenty-foot equivalent unit ships.
At the local bourse on Wednesday, shares in the company shed P1.60 or 1.8% to close at P206.80 apiece. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera