CMA CGM Improves US-Caribbean Links

French container line CMA CGM is upgrading its Gulfbridge and Hispanola feeder services to improve the coverage of the Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean, East, West and North South American coasts markets.

The company decided to improve its Gulfbridge service by decreasing its transit times to Colombia. The first rotation will start on April 29 in New Orleans, with the vessel Frisia Loga.

2,500 TEU capacity vessels will call ports in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea and East and West South American coast calls through CMA CGM’s Kingston transshipment hub.

The Hispaniola feeder service optimization is aimed at improving CMA CGM’s Caribbean islands coverage.

Starting early May, calls frequency within the Hispaniola service will be increased. The main ports will be called weekly.

CMA CGM will place two 850 TEU and 1,150 TEU capacity vessels on the following rotation: Kingston, Jamaica – Port-au-Prince, Haiti – Cap Haitian, Haiti – Philipsburg, Saint Marteen – Saint Johns, Antigua – Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe – Fort-de-France, Martinique – Roseau, Dominique – Camden Park, Saint-Vincent les Grenadines – Saint George, Grenada – Point Lisas, Trinidad & Tobago – Bridgetown, Barbados – Castries, Saint-Lucia – Kingston, Jamaica.

”The Caribbean is an area with a strong growth. The Panama Canal widening, expected to be completed in 2016, proves it and the arrival of larger vessels it implies a regional services adaptation need,’‘ Jean-Yves Duval, CMA CGM Caribbean and Latin American Lines Vice President, said.

”Those improved services will be connected to our new Kingston hub, and will allow the CMA CGM Group to continue improving its solutions for its clients, while dispensing one of the market’s best offers. Those services improvement are in line with the Group’s regional development strategy.”

Last week, CMA CGM linked Houston to West Africa. Starting with m/v TAURUS, in Houston on May 19, cargo bound for West Africa will connect in Tangier on one of our 5 EURAF lines and Guinea Express, with only one transhipment instead of two.