SIMIC

Michele Labrut | Apr 01, 2021

This new East Africa Service 3 (EAS3) will offer direct weekly sailings between China, South-East Asia, Kenya and Tanzania with very competitive transit times for better connectivity between the two continents.

The EAS3 will offer connections to Hapag-Lloyd’s global network via the hub ports of Singapore, Port Klang and Shanghai. Seven 2,800 teu vessels will be deployed in the service, including two provided by Hapag-Lloyd.

Related: Hapag-Lloyd continues container consolidation with NileDutch acquisition

Hapag-Lloyd entered the Sub-Sahara African market about 13 years ago and has seen steady and significant growth in transported volumes to and from Africa since then.

In East Africa, the China Kenya Express Service (CKX) connects Kenya with some of the most important ports in Asia, such as Singapore and Shanghai, while the East Africa Service 2 (EAS2) connects the East African country with the west coast of India and Jebel Ali in Dubai.

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 In March this year, Hapag-Lloyd also opened its own new office in Kenya while the main business will be managed from the port city of Mombasa, the company will also have an office in Nairobi, the country’s capital.

Hapag-Lloyd also serves landlocked East African countries – such as Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan – with regular inland connections to and from Mombasa. As part of its growth strategy, the company will also develop inland connections to Somalia, Southern Ethiopia and Northern Tanzania.

 “Hapag-Lloyd has been steadily expanding its business in East Africa in recent years as part of our strategic focus on selected growth markets worldwide,” said Dheeraj Bhatia, Senior Managing Director Region Middle East at Hapag-Lloyd. “Our new EAS3 service will create a new option for our customers and help us to forge even stronger connections between this flourishing region and the rest of the world.”

Hapag-Lloyd has also been strengthening its offerings and presence in West Africa in recent years. And, in mid-March 2021, Hapag-Lloyd has signed a sale and purchase agreement with the Dutch container shipping company NileDutch.

The first westbound voyage of the EAS3 will start in Shanghai on 29 April 2021 with an estimated arrival in Mombasa on 23 May 2021. Further vessel and schedule details will be announced as soon as possible. The port rotation will be as follows: Shanghai - Ningbo - Nansha - Singapore - Port Kelang - Mombasa - Dar Es Salaam - Port Kelang - Singapore – Shanghai.