Maersk Line invites Saudi customers to visit the Nedlloyd Mercator on the ME2 service’s first port call in Jebel Ali
Customers in Saudi Arabia were invited to visit the Nedlloyd Mercator on the ME2 service’s first port call in Jebel Ali in March, said in the company's press release.
ME2 (Middle East – Europe 2) is the first Maersk Line mainliner service to link Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province (Dammam & Jubail) directly to the Mediterranean.
New direct service
Maersk Line has been working on a better setup for serving the kingdom’s Eastern province. Previously, the Eastern Province was served through feeder service via Jebel Ali.
The main benefits of the new service are faster transit times to the Mediterranean and a more reliable product, as the risk of rollings or delays at the transhipment port is taken out of the equation. Furthermore, the service calls four main hub ports, which enhances Maersk Line’s product to/from other areas in the world such as the Middle East and Africa.
To mark the maiden call of the new service, a number of customers including Sabic, ExxonMobil, Chevron Phillips, Saudi Aramco and Stolt Tank Containers, as well as the Danish ambassador to Saudi Arabia, H.E. Christian Konigsfeldt, and officials and customs managers were invited to a ceremony.
Visitors were presented with the benefits of the new service and how it will serve their needs to cater for the increasing demand at the Eastern Province, which contains the biggest industrial zone and the centre of the petrochemical industry in the kingdom. There is a growing requirement for direct connections to emerging markets, as end customers demand faster lead time for supplies. The ME2 provides a solution to this customer need in particular.
After a grand reception, customers went onboard the Nedlloyd Mercator for a vessel tour. Customers expressed their gratitude to Maersk Line for providing them with this opportunity.
“We constantly strive to provide our customers with efficient and innovative solutions,” says Sunil Joseph, Managing Director for Maersk Line in Saudi Arabia. “That obviously comes at a cost, and as the customers are willing to share that with us, we create a win-win solution. ME2 is not only a good example of this model, but also an expression of our commitment to our valued customers in Saudi Arabia, the fastest growing economy in the Middle East. We are seen as the most reliable carrier in this market and with the introduction of ME2, reliability just got even better”