The initial schedule offers a twice weekly short sea container service, with its first departure from Antwerp on the 12th October. The service will be operated by a 508TEU capacity vessel, sailing from ATO's multimodal terminal on Tuesday and Saturday and ABP Port of Hull on Thursday and Monday, the company said in its press release.
This new connection is in addition to Samskip's existing shortsea services connecting Rotterdam with Tilbury, Hull and Grangemouth (eight per week) and the recent three times weekly Amsterdam-Hull service. This new Antwerp to Hull routing offers shippers a distinct local alternative.
Extensive barge services connect to the ATO terminal including five times per week to both Antwerp's deep-sea container terminals via the Scheldt and - via the Albert Canal - to/from the LCT Liège Container Terminal.
Total container traffic through Antwerp increased by 8.3% in the first half of 2018 over the equivalent period in 2017, according to Port of Antwerp figures. The UK is Antwerp's third largest maritime trading partner, contributing around 15 million tonnes of freight every year.
Port Authority CEO Jacques Vandermeiren said: “We welcome Samskip to the port of Antwerp and their strategic decision to use Antwerp as the departure point for their new short-sea service to the UK. Mobility in and around the port remains a serious challenge and is therefore one of our strategic priorities to ensure further sustainable growth. To create a modal shift that brings the share of truck transport down, it is crucial to offer efficient alternative means of transport and shortsea is clearly one of them. Samskip has excellent expertise in this field and this new short-sea service will definitely support us in achieving this goal.”