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SeaLead’s revised service begins calling JAXPORT
[ October 20, 2022 // Gary G Burrows ]The first SeaLead container ship in the revised Asia to East Coast (AEC) container service began calling the Jacksonville Port Authority (JAXPORT) the week of October 17.
SeaLead updated the AEC service this fall, making JAXPORT the first US port of call. Previously, JAXPORT served as the service’s last US port of call. SeaLead is the first and only container ocean carrier to offer a direct Jacksonville port call as the first stop on the US East Coast from Asia. By the end of 2022, SeaLead plans to increase its sailing frequency into Jacksonville by making the AEC a weekly service. Currently, the AEC calls JAXPORT every two weeks.
“Our decision was quite easy to make Jacksonville’s port the first call on the East Coast as opposed to the last one out,” said SeaLead’s Managing Director of Americas Cas Pouderoyen. “By coming to Jacksonville first, we know exactly when the ship will arrive and work because there’s no berth congestion. We provide customers with reliable service and a fantastic stevedore with SSA Atlantic, who can work the ship right away with fantastic turn times. It’s a tremendous performance all around.”
Serving as the first port of call increases SeaLead’s cargo volumes into JAXPORT and eliminates a week of transit time for Florida importers, offering one of the fastest transit times between the Southeast US and Asian ports. The service also provides export capabilities for Florida businesses seeking to efficiently export their goods to the global economy.
The AEC connects Jacksonville to Nansha, Ningbo, Shanghai, and Qingdao in China; Busan, South Korea; and Manzanillo, Mexico. The service also offers extensive transshipment connections throughout China, Korea, Japan, Southeast Asia and the Indian Subcontinent.
“SeaLead has been a wonderful partner for us as we work to meet increased demand from importers and exporters looking to take advantage of Jacksonville’s efficiencies,” said JAXPORT Director of Ocean Carrier Development Joyssy Woody.
The SSA JCT at Blount Island features a 47-foot deepwater shipping channel with 2,400 feet of newly reconstructed berthing space. Three new eco-friendly cranes will arrive in February 2022, and $70 million in phased yard improvements are underway to enable the facility to accommodate more containers.
