FAL1 to the Port of Gdańsk – CMA CGM launches a new direct oceanic container service.
The French CMA CGM is one of the world’s largest shipping container companies in the world. The French Asia Line 1 (FAL1) service will encompass the following ports: Gdańsk – Wilhelmshaven – Rotterdam – Algeciras – Port Klang – Busan – Ningbo – Shanghai – Yantian – Singapur – Tanger – Dunkerque – Le Havre and Hamburg.
The vessel that will open the connection will be the CMA CGM ZHENG HE, a container ship sailing under the Maltese flag. The ship is 399 metres long and 54 metres wide. The next port call is scheduled for 12 September. That is when the Port of Gdańsk will be visited by the CMA CGM CONCORDE, a ship sailing under the French flag with a length of 400 metres and a width of 62 metres.
Starting in October, FAL1 ships will be arriving in Gdańsk on a weekly basis.
‘Selected CMA CGM vessels sailing as part of the FAL1 service will be equipped with state-of-the-art LNG engines. This is in line with the current EU environmental policy. The company estimates the shipping time between Busan and Gdańsk to be 54 days,’ says Tomasz Braun, Management Board representative for international relations at Port of Gdańsk Authority SA. ‘Busan is the second South Korean port after the Port of Ulsan to open a connection to the Port of Gdańsk. The company will also offer intermodal transport from the Port of Gdańsk to several locations across Poland and Central and Eastern Europe.’
Business Mixer talks bear fruit
The opening of the new service is the result of, among other things, the efforts of the Port of Gdańsk in South Korea as part of Business Mixer 2023, an international conference organised in Seoul late last year by the Port of Gdańsk Authority. The meetings between Polish and South Korean businesses and the study visit to the Busan Port were a great opportunity to establish and strengthen business relations.
Today, South Korea is a leading foreign investor in Poland. There are nearly 550 companies with South Korean capital operating in the country, making the Republic of Korea the second-largest non-European investor in Poland after the US.
‘South Korean investments in Poland, as well as the rise of Polish business activity in South Korea, has spurred the shipping industry to open new connections to the Port of Gdańsk. As a result, our port can offer its services to new clients from Poland, as well as the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Ukraine,’ adds Tomasz Braun.
For Asia, the Port of Gdańsk is a marine gateway to the markets of Central and Eastern Europe, the most dynamically developing region of the European Union. It is not only an ideal market for 100 million consumers, but also an important place for the production and constantly growing exports of high-quality products to markets all over the world.
The Port of Gdańsk’s strategic location, modern infrastructure, competitive prices and special economic zone status give it an advantage over other European ports. These qualities have contributed to the growth and success of the port in recent years, making it an important hub for trade and investment between Asia and Europe.
