India is port of call for global shipping lines

Foreign shipping lines are cashing in on the boom in the Indian container market. All global container carriers are either starting new services or enhancing their services connecting India, China and the Far East.

Going by preliminary estimates, foreign shipping lines are expected to start at least 10 new container services by the end of the year. The Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) is also in the process of tying up with overseas partners.

Sources said Gateway Terminals India, the third container terminal at JN Port, operated by Container Corporation of India and Danish shipping line Maersk, has received over 40 applications from overseas shipping companies for berths.

"With the availability of cheap labour and value-added services, India and China are becoming hubs for semi-manufactured and manufactured goods. This has led to a huge increase in container shipping services," said SCI Director Sudhir S Rangnekar.

However, Indian container companies are not part of the scramble. "Container shipping services operate on wafer-thin margins. Container ships cost around $60-70 million. You need to have a strong international marketing network, along with an expensive infotech backbone, to operate a box shipping service," said Rangnekar.

SCI has joined Dubai-based Emirates Shipping Line (ESL) and Taiwan's TS Line to launch Hyper Galex, a service connecting China, South East Asia, India, and West Asia. Hyper Galex will be served by six vessels of 3,100 twenty-foot equivalent units. ESL will provide four vessels, while SCI and TS Line will provide one each for the service, which starts on November 11.

"Hyper Galex will provide comprehensive container shipping links involving three of the world's fastest growing economic regions. With this in mind, we have focused on providing a very wide port coverage to our customers," said Vikas Khan, chairman and CEO of Emirates Shipping Line. The service will call on Kochi, JN Port, and Mundra.

SCI, along with Israeli company ZIM Integrated Shipping Services, had started an India-US East Coast weekly service in May. Japanese carrier Mitsui OSK Lines launched China-Singapore Service Loop 1 on October 19, connecting Chennai Port and JN Port to Shanghai and Singapore.

Mitsui OSK Lines and Singapore-based Sea Consortium have also started a new container service, Singapore Chennai Express (SMX), linking Chennai and ports in the Singapore straits.

October saw the launch of another service, PIX or Pakistan India Express, by Thai company Regional Container Lines, German Hapag-Lloyd, and TSK Line, a unit of Japanese line NYK.