ZIM LINE has set itself on an ambitious expansion course – to double in size in the next four years and to reclaim its position as one of the top ten liner operators worldwide. That was the message from Boaz Arkin, Haifa-based managing director Europe and Africa of ZIM Integrated Shipping Services, when he officially launched the rebranded agency network in Johannesburg last week. February 15 saw a change of name for the local ship’s agency from Polaris Shipping to ZIM Integrated Shipping Services of Southern Africa, part of a worldwide strengthening of the ZIM brand name. The move coincided with the line’s stronger focus on the Africa region, underscored by the setting up of a ZIM Africa super-district office in Johannesburg headed up by Eli Aviv. “ZIM Line has been in Africa since the 60s,” Arkin told FTW. “We were one of the first lines to bring containerisation to the continent, but we’ve neglected it over the past ten years. “That will change with our strategic focus firmly directed on Southern Africa which we believe offers huge potential.” Backing up the line’s expansion drive is an impressive order book which includes the delivery of eleven 10 000 TEU vessels and four 8 000 TEU ships by mid 2009.
