The operational agreement between A.P. Moller Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd under the Gemini Cooperation has taken effect even ahead of its official launch in February 2025.
The new network consists of 27 and 29 efficient ocean mainliner services supported by an extensive network of 30 agile, intraregional shuttle services.
It will comprise either 300 or 340 vessels with a capacity exceeding 3 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of container to achieve 90 percent schedule reliability.
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The ambition is to deliver a flexible and interconnected ocean network with industry-leading schedule reliability above 90 percent once fully phased in.
Since the two companies unveiled the new long-term collaboration in January 2024, they have been working on finalising the details of the operational collaboration which covers a joint ocean freight network on East-West trades.
With around five months to launch, Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd are now ready to share an update covering finalised service maps and how the network has evolved since the announcement in January 2024.
Additionally, the companies are also presenting an alternative Cape of Good Hope network due to the ongoing disruptions in the Red Sea.
“Reliability, connectivity, and sustainability are the keywords in the networks we are presenting today, and we are pleased that we now can give our customers full transparency about how we will deliver a best-in-class ocean network so they can begin planning despite a highly dynamic situation,” says Rolf Habben Jansen, CEO of Hapag-Lloyd.
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In October 2024, the Gemini Cooperation will announce which network it expects to put to sea in February 2025.
“We are looking forward to the launch of our completely redesigned network next year, and we are happy to reconfirm that our schedule reliability target remains unchanged irrespective of which network we will phase in. We believe our collaboration will raise the bar for reliability to the benefit of our customers and set a new and very high standard in the industry,” says Vincent Clerc, CEO of Maersk.
