South Korean feeder operator Dong Young Shipping has launched a new service, connecting South Korea with Russia, on 14 June.
Dong Young will be the sole operator of the new product and has deployed one container vessel, the 700TEU Pegasus Pacer, to the shuttle service between Busan and Vladivostok.
“In line with the company’s principle that Namsung specialises in south-bound shipments and Dong Young focuses on north-bound shipments, it was decided that only Dong Young will operate the South Korea-Russia route,” confirmed a representative of Namsung Shipping, the mother company of Dong Young.
Originally created in 1974 as a joint venture between Namsung’s founding Park family and the Swire group’s South Korean branch, Dong Young became Namsung’s wholly-owned subsidiary in the early 2000s, after being bought out.
The company plans to create a multimodal service to target cargo railed further into and from Russia or Europe, while it is interested in cargo exported from Japan to Russia or Europe through transshipment at Busan.
Dong Young is the fifth South Korean operator to enter the South Korea-Russia Far East route, after HMM, Sinokor Merchant Marine, Korea Marine Transport Company (KMTC Line) and CK Line.
However, the competition is growing in the South Korea-Russia Far East lane and South Korean liner operators are not the only players. Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), Ocean Network Express (ONE) and Emirates Shipping Line have also launched services between South Korea and the Russian Far East recently, in response to growing shipments between both sides.
South Korea’s current government, led by President Moon Jae-in, has a “New Northern Policy,” which seeks joint infrastructure projects with Russia and North Korea. This has resulted in greater cargo flows between South Korea and the Russian Far East.
Martina Li
Asia Correspondent
