Diamond adds Gulf operator to agency portfolio

JUST ADDED to the Diamond Shipping agency portfolio is northbound cargo movement on the occasional calls of the Gulf Azov multi-purpose fleet, according to m.d. Brian Hawkins.
This is a joint-venture between Oasis Shipping International of Dubai, and the Ukrainian carrier, Azov Shipping Company - with the 20-vessel fleet handled out of Dubai.
On southbound calls with full parcels for SA, we will be offering the space on the return leg for SA-sourced cargoes, said Hawkins.
Another recent signing was the commercial agency in Gauteng for the Cape-based Fair Cape Marine - in turn agents for the Indian Ocean Lines. This service offering is aimed at cargoes between Durban, Port Louis, Reunion, Maldives, Colombo and Mumbai (formerly Bombay).
The two newcomers join Diamond Shipping's original two contracts, the first with the Taiwan-based Yang Ming Line which has a slot charter agreement with Kien Hung and DSR Senator on the inter-continental run between the Far East, SA and South America.
Yang Ming also sails one of its own ships (the Hansa Commodore) - joining the DSR vessel and 10 of Kien Hung's in the 12-ship fleet.
Diamond's other agency is for the Intra Indian Ocean Service operated by the charter fleet of Hyundai Merchant Marine Services. This is presently run on the Durban-Dar es Salaam-Mumbai-Jebel Ali-Sharjah-Mombasa-Dar-Durban route by two Lo-Ro (load-on, roll-off) ships.
The primary movement is second-hand vehicle movements between Mumbai and Sharjah; and Mombasa and Dar - although Diamond is looking for vehicle movements ex SA to join the other breakbulk offering on the northbound run.
The heightened involvement in Gauteng has called for a Johannesburg office, and this has recently been established under branch manager, Hennie van der Walt. With the new lines in our stable needing representation in Gauteng, he said, and the increasing amount of traffic to-and-from the country's main marketplace, we officially moved into our Jo'burg premises in December.
A lot of control of our cargoes is in Gauteng, and we have to have a marketing thrust centralised around Jo'burg.
By Alan Peat