OOCL Returns to Incheon Port

OOCL, a Hong Kong-based shipping company and member of the G6 Alliance, is returning to South Korea’s Incheon Port after a 12-year absence through the recently reshuffled CHL (China Hochiminh Laem Chabang) service and the CC1-CC2 combo service.

The company will take part in the regular container service that connects South Korea, China, Vietnam, and Thailand, according to the Incheon Port Authority.

On August 22, the port authority announced that the CTS Line, which connected this port to China, Vietnam, and Thailand, has been changed to CHL due to changes in ports of call, shipping companies and operated vessels, among others.

The new CHL will be jointly run by Taiwan’s Yangming Line, Thailand’s RCL (Regional Container Line) and OOCL.

The service will be launched on September 7, according to the Incheon Port Authority.

The port rotation is as follows:

Incheon (South Korea) Dalian, Xinjiang, Qingdao, Hong Kong, Shekou (China), Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam), Laem Chabang (Thailand), Shekou, Hong Kong, Incheon.

OOCL plans to deploy two vessels, the 2,867 TEU HS OCEANO and the 2,702 TEU LAILI, while each of the two remaining companies will deploy one 2,700 TEU boxship on the route.

The operation will be made in one-week intervals, with the ship calling the port every Wednesday and leaving every Thursday, the port authority said.

According to the Incheon Port Authority, with this move, OOCL will “utilize vacant container boxes in the Seoul and Incheon areas more efficiently”.

“Recently, OOCL, that had not provided any service to or from Incheon Port since 2004, determined to put vessels into the CC1-CC2 combo service, the only ocean service of Incheon Port, and then decided to take part in the CHL service, which proves the shipping company’s positive outlook on and expectation for Incheon Port,” Kim Soon-cheol, Head of Incheon Port Authority’s Marketing Team, said.