New link by barge to China for NYK
JAPAN'S NYK Line will start a dedicated feeder service linking Shekou Container Terminal (SCT) in southern China and Modern Terminals (MTL) at Kwai Chung on April 2.
Barges of 80-100 teu capacity will leave SCT on Fridays, arriving at MTL each Saturday.
This is the carrier's second feeder service linking China to Hong Kong, from where containers are shipped to the United States and Europe.
A similar Huangpu service started operations in June. The 88 teu barge leaves Huangpu on Friday and also arrives in Hong Kong on Saturday.
NYK China, the Shanghai-based wholly-owned subsidiary of NYK Hong Kong, will begin operations on April 18. A banquet at the Garden Hotel, Shanghai, will mark the occasion.
The following day, a reception will be held at the East Seaport Hotel to celebrate the first anniversary of the company's Ningbo representative office.
NYK was the first of the three Japanese lines to be authorised by Beijing to have a base in China.
The company has applied for a licence that will allow it to expand its business to cover the whole of China, company officials said, though the expansion might have to be done step-by-step.
At present, its business scope is limited to the Shanghai area.
NYK has offices in China's major port cities, namely Dalian, Qingdao, Yantai, Beijing, Tianjin, Xingang, Lianyungang, Zhenjiang, Nantong, Nanjing, Zhangjiagang, Ningbo, Guangzhou, Huangpu, Zhuhai and Haikou.
The company employs more than 70 people on the mainland.
