On Saturday April 4th 2015 La Spezia Container Terminal (LSCT) welcomed the first call on the MINA service by a China Shipping Container Lines (CSCL) operated ship. The m/v HS Paris - 300 metres in length and 6,500 TEUs in nominal capacity – was berthed alongside the Fornelli East berth, completing operations the following day.
Mr Gianfranco Gazzolo – CSCL Italy General Manager – commented: “HS Paris is our first operated ship deployed on the MINA service, jointly run with our partners UASC, HANJIN and CMA CGM, connecting the Indian Sub-Continent and Middle East to the west Mediterranean and the US Atlantic Coast. China Shipping Container Lines – which started operating on this service as slot charterers back in 2013 – has decided to strengthen its commitment, particularly with the objective of exploring opportunities offered by the Italy–US trades. Today the market is on the rise, backed by a strong dollar which facilitates Italian exports. Our call at La Spezia has proved to work efficiently, with intermodal connections helping us to collect export cargo from a vast Italian area, in time for our call normally operated on a Sunday.”
To celebrate the event, a personalized crest was presented to m/v HS Paris’ captain Nikola Tucevic and his crew by planning team members while operations were proceeding on schedule. The ship left La Spezia shortly after, continuing her journey westbound.
