Liner Shipping Service: Mobile

Alabama: Cosco Container Lines and Hanjin Shipping Add Direct Container Service Between Asia and Mobile

A new shipping service link with Asia operated jointly by COSCO Container Lines and Hanjin Shipping made its first call at APM Terminals Mobile on June 6.

The terminal, which opened in 2008, is owned by the Alabama State Port Authority (ASPA) and operated under lease by APM Terminals, a subsidiary of the Maersk Group.

The weekly Gulf of Mexico Express (GME) service connects Alabama shippers to the ports of Shanghai, Ningbo, Xiamen, and Yantian. Transshipment options are available through the Port of Cristobal in Panama. The U.S. Gulf rotation includes Houston as well as Mobile.

"This new service further strengthens the port’s position in a major trade point serving Asia," said James K. Lyons, the port authority’s chief executive officer.

GME is the third all-water Asia service to be added to the Mobile’s container terminal since it opened. CSCL/Hanjin join the world’s top three container carriers already providing weekly, direct service between Mobile and ports in China, Hong Kong, Kora and Singapore. "With the addition of CSCL/Hanjin service, the three weekly calls could attract additional economic development opportunities in the state for companies focused on Asian markets," Mr. Lyons noted.

APM Terminals Mobile
Photo/Alabama State Port Authority