SAFMARINE AND MAERSK SEALAND TO REVISE U.S./WEST AFRICA LINKS

SAFMARINE AND MAERSK SEALAND TO REVISE U.S./WEST AFRICA LINKS

   Safmarine and its sister company Maersk Sealand will revise their U.S./West Africa liner services in January, following the absorption of the liner business of Torm Lines, a niche African liner operator, by the A.P. Moller group.

   A.P. Moller announced the takeover of the Torm Lines’ liner arm in September. Torm had operated multipurpose ships from the U.S. Gulf and East Coast of North America to West Africa that carried containerized and breakbulk cargoes.

   Maersk Sealand will now run the container side of the Torm operation, while Safmarine will absorb its breakbulk cargo activities. Maersk Sealand’s service in this trade operates via transshipment in Algeciras, Spain. The breakbulk service of Safmarine is expected to continue to be direct, a feature of the former Torm service.

   A new U.S./West Africa schedule for the service will be introduced in January.

   A.P Moller said earlier that the liner shipping staff of Torm Lines would join Maersk Sealand and Safmarine. Safmarine runs a breakbulk shipping department at its head office in Antwerp.