Freight News, Sea


Gemini service takes to the water

[ January 31, 2025   //   ]

The Gemini Cooperation between Hapag-Lloyd and Maersk will be officially launched on 1 February. The transition period is expected to last until late May, with vessels phasing into the new network, and out of the expiring agreements that Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd have with other carriers.

It will be designed on a hub and spoke pattern to improve reliability and will offer a total of 57 services – 29 mainline and 28 inter-regional shuttles, 3.7m TEU capacity and some 340 vessels.

As announced in October 2024, the Gemini network will re-route via the Cape of Good Hope, avoiding the troubled Red Sea region. The partners will continue to monitor the security situation in the Red Sea and will only return there when it is safe to do so.

Hapag-Lloyd chief executive Rolf Habben Jansen said: “With our targeted schedule reliability, we will satisfy one of our customers’ most important needs even better and set a new quality standard in the industry. Together with our operating partner Maersk, we are focused on delivering on our 90% schedule reliability promise, adding: “Thanks to our effective hub and spoke operating system, we can deploy larger vessels and thus simultaneously optimize speed, reduce idling times, and thereby cutting down on carbon emissions. All of this saves our customers a lot of time and resources.”

Maersk chief product officer of ocean, Johan Sigsgaard, said: “We are now ready to commence the phase-in of the new network. Over the last year, we have carefully planned this to ensure that all our customers experience a smooth transition into the new network. With its innovative design, we believe our customers will benefit from increased reliability, flexibility and more competitive products.”

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