One of the biggest increases in weekly capacity experienced on the Asia/Europe trades in several years is due to kick off in April as the CKYHE Alliance, comprising COSCO, K Line, Yangming, Hanjin and Evergreen, begin to deploy 14,000 teu vessels on two services on the trade as replacements for 8,000/9,500 teu vessels.

The phase-in programme is part of the service network upgrade planned by the CKYHE member lines aimed at bringing a modern, futuristic approach by the alliance, and “meeting up with market reality,” according to executives within the lines.

Yangming will introduce the first five 14,080 teu of a 10-vessel series being built by Hyundai Heavy Industries for charter to the Taiwan line onto the Asia/Europe NE7 service during the second quarter, with the first vessel expected to phase during early April.

The five YML vessels will operate alongside a further six 14,000 teu COSCO vessels, effectively providing an 11 x 13/14,000 teu vessel service that replaces the existing 8,500/9,500 teu vessel NE7 service.

Starting from April 8, the Yangming NE7 phase in programme for the 14,080 vessels at Ningbo will be: YM Wish, April 8; YM World, April 15; YM Wellhead, April 22; YM Wondrous, May 27; and YM Winner, June 10.

Port rotation of the NE7 will also change as already and become Ningbo, Shanghai, Xiamen, Singapore, Piraeus, Hamburg, Rotterdam, Felixstowe, Antwerp, Piraeus, Ningbo.

Port changes are new calls at Ningbo, Shanghai, Xiamen and Piraeus, while Nansha, Hong Kong and Yantian will be dropped from the existing schedule.

As a result of the new capacity injection, weekly capacity on the NE7 will increase from the present 8,970 teu to 13,220 teu, a staggering 47% increase.

The CKYHE lines will also undertake a similar move on the Asia/Europe service known as the NE2, and changes to the port rotation will also be undertaken from the second half of April.

While the exact capacity increase is not yet known on the NE2, it is understood that the figure will be similar to the NE7, as weekly capacity will increase from 8,200/9,500 teu to around 14,000 teu on a gradual phase in process through the second and third quarters of this year.

The first 14,000 teu vessel, yet to be named, is scheduled to phase in to the NE2 during early May.

For the port rotation changes, the CKYHE lines confirm, the 9,040 teu Hamburg Bridge will make the first new call at Nansha on April 18. On the same westbound sailing, there will be a new Piraeus call on May 12, followed by a second Piraeus call on the eastbound leg on June 6. Under the new NE2 port rotation, the following ports are covered: Nansha, Kaohsiung, Yantian, Singapore, Piraeus, Rotterdam, Felixstowe, Hamburg, Antwerp, Piraeus, Hong Kong and Nansha.

– Paul Richardson