Besides 2M, the CKYHE Alliance, minus one (Hanjin), is attracted by the growth of Transatlantic volumes as well and increases the capacity of its TAS service, the company said in its press release.
The average capacity of the four ships operated, one each by Coscon, Evergreen, “K”Line and Yang Ming, increases from the current 4,500 TEU to 6,000 TEU average. The TAS service connects Rotterdam with New York, Norfolk and Charleston.
In 2013, about 46 million tonnes of containerised cargo was transported between Northwest Europe and North America. Rotterdam’s market share amounted to twenty percent. At the beginning of 2015, twelve of the eighteen transatlantic container services called at the port of Rotterdam. Transatlantic trade is on the up. Other shipping companies, in addition to 2M, are also increasing their frequency/capacity or launching services including, partially, new ports of call.