Grand Alliance vessel makes maiden voyage to Kingston

The OOCL Guangzhou, operated by the Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL), a member of the Grand Alliance, made its maiden voyage to Kingston last week, having left the shipyard on May 27. The vessel arrived at the Kingston Container Terminal (KCT) on June 21 with a 27-member crew.

This 4,500 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) vessel is part of a fleet of 79 vessels operated by OOCL, a public company listed in Hong Kong, and one of the leading international carriers serving China. The line provides a full range of logistics and transport services to all major east/west trading economies of the world.

Members of KCT, on behalf of the Port Authority of Jamaica, welcomed Captain Wai Ho Kong and his crew and presented him with a painting of a local scenery to mark the memorable occasion.

Gaby Sharf, KCT operations manager, expressed his delight in having the weekly service to Kingston, and said he hoped to see an increase in activity, particularly for the domestic market.

The Grand Alliance is the leading consortium in global container shipping, whose other members include Hapag-Lloyd, MISC Berhad and NYK. The Grand Alliance members (with the exception of MISC Berhad), along with ZIM Integrated Shipping Services, have agreed to cooperate on a service from South China to the United States East Coast, via the Panama Canal.