CMA CGM has introduced two new services calling at the port of Ngqura. The Shaka Express and Seas II services link Port Elizabeth to South America and Asia, according to Arnaud Thibault, regional director of CMA CGM and Delmas. Ngqura is a direct call from Rio de Janeiro on the easterly Seas II service. CGA-CGM is operating 10 x 4 200 TEU vessels on the route, with calls at Singapore, Hong Kong, Kahosiung, Xiamen, Ningo, Shanghai, Port Kelang, Santos, Paranagua, and Itajai. The Shaka Express runs from Chiwan to Singapore, Port Louis, Durban, Ngqura, Port Louis, Singapore, Fizhou, Xiamen, Kaohsiung, and Hong Kong. The Shaka Express will provide new reefer capacity from Durban and Ngqura to Singapore and Hong Kong, which accounts for 20% of the containerised volumes on the trade – in particular, the transport of citrus and bananas. The service will also connect with CMA CGM’s network in Hong Kong for cargo from and to North China and will allow transhipment of cargo from northbound and southbound calls in Port Louis for cargo to and from all Indian Ocean Islands, says the company. CMA CGM is deploying six vessels of between 4 500 and 6 500 TEU on this route. According to the line, over 30% of South Africa’s trade is with the East. The service also calls on Port Louis, allowing relay of cargo to and from all Indian Ocean Islands, thanks to the connection with the CMA CGM Mascareignes service (linking Gulf, Pakistan and the Indian Ocean).
