New West Africa service launched

The shipping line Delmas, part of the CMA CGM Group, which has been present in west and central Africa for over a century, has added a new service on the SA-West Africa trade. The first ship in this Sango service sailed the first return voyage in mid-February, according to Philippe Fozzani, MD of CMA CGM South Africa. “The service will initially operate on a four-weekly basis, sailing a port rotation of Durban-Cape Town-Walvis Bay, Namibia-Pointe Noire, DRCLuanda, Angola,” he told FTW, “but will go to two weekly by early April.” The line is using 500-TEU capacity vessels on the trade. “These smaller vessels are ideal for the purpose,” said Fozzani. “With this shipping tool, we are able to fit the demand of the market and adapt to the various specificities of the West African ports – congestion, no gantries, and the like.” The Cape Town-Angola market is very active, he added, especially for reefer (refrigerated container) traffic. He also pointed to the valuable feeder service that the service offered between Durban, Cape Town and Walvis Bay – allowing the line to tranship the cargoes from its other international services on its own vessels to the west coast. “We are strongly marketing this Walvis Bay connection,” Fozzani said, “because it also offers a good means for hubbing cargoes into the southern parts of west and central Africa.” Delmas’s Asia-Africa (Asaf) service has also recently introduced a call in Walvis Bay – following a bunkeringonly call in Durban. “This connects all the Asian ports to Walvis Bay direct,” said Fozzani. The line is also busy trying to develop further possibilities in Pointe Noire and Luanda. But, according to Fozzani, the port congestion there is a drawback to any new market development. “About a 12-day delay in Pointe Noire, and anything up to 40-days in Luanda,” he said.