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Southeast Asia is Now a Steamship Away from Conley Container Terminal
New Weekly, Direct Service via the Suez Canal Opens Additional Markets

BOSTON -- Southeast Asia is now just a ship away for New England importers and exporters the Massachusetts Port Authority announced today. A new Port of Boston service via the Suez Canal is set to begin May 27, and adds direct destinations never before offered from Conley Container Terminal including Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and Vietnam. The new service called AWE-5 is a consortium of the China Ocean Shipping Company (COSCO), Yang Ming Marine Transport of Taiwan, Hanjin Shipping of South Korea, and Hyundai Merchant Marine also of South Korea, and is scheduled to call Boston every Friday.

“I am extremely pleased that our highly successful North China service over the last decade has resulted in the launch of a new direct service from Boston to additional Asian markets,” said Mike Leone, Port Director for the Massachusetts Port Authority. “The new Southeast Asia service will offer tremendous growth opportunities for New England’s trade-dependent companies wanting to do business in those emerging countries, while at the same time creating hundreds of local jobs here at home.”

Compared to the Panama Canal which is more efficient for trade with Northeast Asia, yet limited to the smaller ships that can fit through its locks, the Suez Canal has no size limits, and offers faster navigation times from South and Southeast Asia to the U.S. East Coast. Nine Post-Panamax ships too large to fit through the existing Panama Canal locks, will sail between Boston and ports in Hong Kong; Yantian, China; Kaohsiung, Taiwan; Cai Mep, Vietnam; and Singapore.

"The new Southeast Asia service calling Boston is wonderful news for our 700-member companies," said Richard Bridges, President of the Coalition for New England Companies for Trade (CONECT). "New England importers and exporters now gain considerable advantages and opportunities in doing business in the various countries there because freight will move direct through the Port of Boston."

The new service route is expected to increase volumes at Conley Terminal by more than 50,000 containers a year. It is estimated that as many as 400 local and regional jobs will be created over time as a result of the new service. Also, the addition of Hyundai Merchant Marine boosts Massport’s roster of top 20 global container lines serving Conley Terminal to six.

“This new service allows International Forest Products more access to markets in southern China and Southeast Asia that were previously difficult for us to access. This second Asia service is a great complement to Boston’s existing north Asian routes,” said Daniel Kraft, President and Chief Executive Officer of International Forest Products.

With the addition of the weekly Southeast Asia service, the Port of Boston is now called by four direct services. The others include:
• Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) calls weekly with a North European service to the ports of Bremerhaven, Germany; Felixstowe, UK; Antwerp, Belgium; and Le Havre, France.
• Mediterranean Shipping Company also offers a weekly Mediterranean service which connects to the ports of Naples and La Spezia, Italy; Valencia, Spain; and Sines, Portugal.
• COSCO and its partners, “K” Line of Japan, Yang Ming Marine Transport, and Hanjin Shipping, operate a North China service, which provides weekly service to the Chinese ports of Qingdao, Shanghai, Ningbo, and Yokohama.

The Port of Boston is a vital economic engine for New England, and container activity at Conley Terminal is likely to grow as an increasing number of larger ships head toward East Coast ports through the Suez Canal and from the Panama Canal once its expansion is complete. To keep pace with this future demand Massport is investing millions in the container terminal. Over the last several years more than $70 million was spent to upgrade and expand the yard configuration. New machinery was added, and Massport purchased an adjacent 30-acre parcel of land for future container operations. Recently, an enhanced computerized terminal operating system was implemented, and plans are also underway for a dedicated truck route and terminal buffer.

Massport’s cruise, cargo, and other maritime operations enhance and enable economic growth and vitality in the region by supporting more than 27,000 direct and indirect jobs, and contributing nearly $450 million in annual economic impact. It is estimated that with the expected cargo volume increases over the next decade Massport-generated jobs will grow to more than 50,000 by 2025. The Port of Boston’s overall activity supports 34,000 jobs, and contributes more than $2 billion to the local, regional, and national economies.

The Port of Boston is the oldest continually active major port in the Western Hemisphere with the largest container port in New England. Conley Container Terminal is New England’s largest full service facility and is located just 1.5 miles from the interstate highway system. In 2010, more than 1.5 million tons of containerized cargo passed through the port. Top imports include: alcoholic beverages, frozen seafood, footwear and furniture. Top exports include: hides and skins, autos, logs and lumber, frozen seafood, paper including waste paper, and scrap metal. For more information please visit www.theportofboston.com.

The Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport) owns and operates Boston Logan International Airport, public terminals in the Port of Boston, Hanscom Field and Worcester Regional Airport. Massport is a financially self-sustaining public authority whose premier transportation facilities generate more than $8 billion annually, and enhance and enable economic growth and vitality in New England. No state tax dollars are used to fund operations or capital improvements at Massport facilities.

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