HMM announced Wednesday it will launch a new container service called GIA (Gulf - India - East Africa Service) connecting India and East Africa starting in September.
The GIA service is the second Africa feeder network under the hub-and-spoke strategy for the container division that HMM has pursued since President Choi Won-hyuk took office. It centers on Nhava Sheva and Mundra — the two Indian ports where cargo from India and Central Asia converges — and extends the network to East Africa.
The inaugural sailing will depart from Nhava Sheva in the fourth week of September, with five container vessels of around 2,800 TEU (one TEU equals one 20-foot container) deployed on the route. Port calls will follow the sequence of Nhava Sheva (India) – Mundra (India) – Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) – Mombasa (Kenya). China's COSCO Shipping, Singapore's PIL and Taiwan's Inter Asia Line will co-operate the service alongside HMM, with plans to extend port calls to the Middle East in the future.
With the GIA route, HMM has added an East Africa service to its existing North and West Africa route (MA2), anchored at Algeciras in Spain, establishing a firm foothold for medium- to long-term network expansion across the African continent. Kenya and Tanzania — the two newly added ports of call — are leading gateway ports in East Africa where port infrastructure and inland logistics development are ongoing, and HMM expects the service to significantly improve convenience for shippers.
HMM said it plans to build a dense network combining deep-sea global services with regional feeder networks under its hub-and-spoke strategy, enabling flexible responses to market changes and strengthening customer service competitiveness.
To that end, the company is continuing to secure competitive feeder vessels that can generate synergies with its existing fleet of ultra-large ships. HMM has previously disclosed through a regulatory filing that it plans to expand its container fleet to 1.47 million TEU across 166 vessels by 2030.
"The launch of this India–East Africa service is an important milestone in extending our hub-and-spoke strategy across the African continent," an HMM official said. "We will continue to expand our network in high-growth markets and raise customer satisfaction through differentiated service competitiveness."
Meanwhile, HMM plans to invest about 29 trillion won ($20.3 billion) over five years through 2030 to expand its combined container and bulk fleet to 276 vessels.
The company had earlier set a plan to invest 15 trillion won between July 2022 and July 2027, and had spent 6.5 trillion won of that by June 2024.
In September 2024, HMM extended the investment period to the end of 2030 and raised the total investment target to 23.5 trillion won. Of that revised plan, 2.7 trillion won had been spent through the end of last year.
likehyo85@heraldcorp.com
