Richter to head up Macs office in Mombasa

Maritime Carrier Shipping (Macs) has developed a tidy multi-purpose service between Durban and Kenya’s only large seaport of Mombasa, according to the line’s breakbulk manager, Lars Greiner. “We started the East African service two years ago, more as a feeder service to the Macs/Gulf Africa Line (GAL) ships coming into SA from the US,” he told FTW. “But the link took off, fed with cargoes to and from the surrounding East African countries which use Mombasa as their main port.” The East African feeder started with the single vessel – the Black Rhino – which is a specialised project vessel with heavylift gear. But the demand grew, and soon justified a second ship on the route – the White Rhino, a tweendecker also with heavy-lift gear, but more of the liner type and a shade smaller, according to Greiner. The Black Rhino was then replaced by the Lilac Roller, a similar vessel to its partner in the fleet. It’s not just growing cargo in and out of Kenya that Macs is aiming at, with Greiner also pointing out that, “down the road in Uganda and Rwanda”, project cargoes were going in and in reasonable numbers. “We want our fair share of this cargo,” he added. Macs is also looking at containerised cargo in moderate quantities, with Greiner highlighting an advantage his ships can offer in the congestionbound ports of the east coast of Africa. “Our vessels don’t call at the container terminal in a port, but at the much freer multi-purpose berths,” he said. “We therefore avoid the congestion that slows up other container services’ schedules.” To get a handle on the market, and take advantage of the available cargo loads, Macs felt it needed to develop its presence in the East African region. It’s all part of the Macs philosophy, according to Greiner, where it likes to have a personal involvement in each of the markets it serves. “With our newly appointed line representative giving us that presence in the region from Mombasa we’re hoping to secure this market.” And he felt that their “Man in Mombasa” was well suited to the task. “Adrian Richter is the former East Africa rep for Zim Line, and he knows the area.” The port rotation for this now two vessel service is: Durban-Maputo- Beira-Mombasa – with the ships then normally calling at one or two out of Quelimane, Temba, Nacala, Dar es Salaam, Tulear and Mahajunga, by inducement.