Hapag-Lloyd AG (Hapag-Lloyd) and A.P. Moller-Maersk (Maersk) have signed an agreement for a new long-term operational collaboration, which will start in February 2025 and will see Hapag-Lloyd's departure from THE Alliance.

The partnership — called "Gemini Cooperation" — seeks to deliver a flexible and interconnected ocean network with industry-leading reliability, according to the announcement.

"Teaming up with Maersk will help us to further boost the quality we deliver to our customers. Additionally, we will benefit from efficiency gains in our operations and joint efforts to further accelerate the decarbonisation of our industry," said Rolf Habben Jansen, CEO of Hapag-Lloyd.

The new cooperation between Hapag-Lloyd and Maersk will comprise a fleet pool of around 290 vessels with a combined capacity of 3.4 million containers (TEU); Maersk will deploy 60% and Hapag-Lloyd 40%.

"We are pleased to enter this cooperation with Hapag-Lloyd, which is the ideal ocean partner on our strategic journey. By entering this cooperation, we will be offering our customers a flexible ocean network that will be raising the bar for reliability in the industry," added Vincent Clerc, CEO of Maersk.

"This will strengthen our integrated logistics offering and meet our customers’ needs," he said.

As a part of the agreement, the two companies have set the ambitious target of delivering schedule reliability of above 90% once the network is fully phased in.

Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd noted that apart from improved service quality, customers will also benefit from improved transit times in many major port-to-port corridors and access to some of the world's best-connected ocean hubs.

Both companies are committed to the decarbonisation of their fleets and have set the most ambitious decarbonisation targets in the industry with Maersk aiming for net-zero in 2040 and Hapag-Lloyd in 2045.

"As a consequence of joining this cooperation, Hapag-Lloyd will leave THE Alliance end of January 2025," the announcement added.

In January 2023, Maersk and MSC announced that the 2M alliance will end in January 2025.

During 2024, Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd will carefully plan the transition from their current alliances to the new operational cooperation.

It added that concurrently, service to customers will continue along existing agreements.

"Further details about "Gemini Cooperation", including the new vessel schedules, will be announced in due course once available," the announcement said.

Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd said "Gemini Cooperation" said the cooperation will cover seven trades: Asia/US West Coast, Asia/US East Coast, Asia/Middle East, Asia/Mediterranean, Asia/North Europe, Middle East – India/Europe and Transatlantic.

It will also comprise 26 mainline services.

The mainline ocean services will be complemented by a global network of dedicated shuttles centred around owned and/ or controlled transhipment hubs – thereof 14 shuttle services in Europe, 4 in the Middle East, 13 in Asia and 1 in the Gulf of Mexico.

The announcement said these shuttle services will offer a fast connection with flexible capacity between hubs and ports served by shuttle services, and vice versa.