Ocean Network Express (ONE), the mega carrier born out of the merger between three Japanese giants of the shipping industry NYK, MOL and K Line launched the EC5 service in Colombo with a maiden call on South Asia Gateway Terminals (SAGT), Port of Colombo last week.
A plaque exchange ceremony was held aboard MOL Paramount to mark the occasion.
General Manager Operations Upul Jinadasa and Commercial and Marketing Manager Dhashma Karunaratne represented South Asia Gateway Terminals while Managing Director Vishvanath Daluwatte, General Manager Ayesh Perera, General Manager, Product and Network, Lohitha Hettiarachchi represented ONE Lanka.
General Manager, Operations of SAGT, Upul Jinadasa said, “SAGT’s operational capabilities have been frequently recognised at the global arena, and ONE’s choice to deploy the EC5 service is an endorsement of our performance capabilities.”
CEO of SAGT, Romesh David said, “Team SAGT is delighted to provide a service of excellence to ONE’s inaugural call at SAGT and looks forward to building a partnership with ONE to serve the Global Maritime Community with a Best in Class Product, integrating the strengths of SAGT and ONE.”
Managing Director of ONE Lanka, Vishvanath Daluwatte said, “ONE Lanka looks forward to partner with SAGT and Port of Colombo to exceed customer expectations in Sri Lanka and in regional markets.”
The three lines NYK, MOL and K Line first announced the merger in November 2016 and commenced single joint operations in April 2018, making them the sixth largest carrier by size with nearly 7% market share. With a fleet of 230 container ships, the company seeks to meet customers’ needs by providing high-quality, competitive container shipping services with the consolidation and enhancement of the three companies’ global network and service structures.
The integration lets ONE to incorporate best practices from the three companies and to take advantage of their combined 1,440,000 TEU fleet size. Supported by a worldwide high level, globally-connected organization, it offers 85 service loops and a comprehensive network linking more than 200 of the world’s major ports. ONE is poised to gain the advantage of the strategic location of Port of Colombo and is expected to deploy another service at SAGT in addition to EC5, the release said.