China’s COSCO Shipping Lines has opened a new regional service of container shipping on Sunday. The service will link ports in Northern Europe and the Mediterranean Sea.
COSCO Shipping (Europe) Tian Dong, in his speech during the opening ceremony in Istanbul, said that the new direct service is a “milestone” for the company because it is the first time for a Chinese enterprise to offer such service in the region.
Trade within the European region is promoted by the shipping lines with the recent service launch.
According to Tian, the intra-Europe trade has increased by 70 percent annually over the last two years. A total of 12 services in the Northern Europe and the Mediterranean region are offered by COSCO.
The new service, said COSCO, will facilitate the growth of the company’s feeder service from a number of individual lines to a collaborative net. The shipping lines’ serviceability and quality in the region will be enhanced with such expansion.
The shipping company has also invested in the terminals of Piraeus in Greece, Kumport in Istanbul and Antwerp in Belgium.
Ports in Northern Europe and ports in the Adriatic Sea, the Black Sea and Eastern Mediterranean will be fully linked by COSCO’s new service by calling at Piraeus Port.
The shipping lines are looking at 15 trunk and feeder vessels calling at the Greek port on a weekly basis. The lines also said that company will also be providing the “most competitive” services to its customers.
By calling at Salerno in Italy, the new service also provides a new route for shipping cargo from the Mediterranean to the United States.
Chinese Commercial Consul Huang Songfeng expressed his confidence in the new service. He said that the new service will promote the development new markets in countries along the Belt and Road Initiative. It will also aid in making the most out of Istanbul and Turkey’s exceptional geographical advantages.
China’s COSCO Shipping Lines is looking forward to increased sales with its new regional service for Northern Europe and the Mediterranean region.