British shipping company Ellerman City Liners has announced the launch of its weekly direct service between the Port of Bilbao and the US East Coast.
The new service is aimed at facilitating multimodal transport of containers and is set to start in mid-February.
The vessels of Ellerman will dock at the CSP Iberian Bilbao terminal and the planned rotation is Bilbao, Antwerp, Rotterdam, Hamburg, Tilbury, New York, Wilmington, and Jacksonville.
The direct connection between Bilbao and New York is expected to significantly reduce transit times, with imports taking just 15 days and exports taking 18 days.
READ: PD Ports welcomes new Iberian connection at Teesport
The service will be covered by two vessels, the SC MARA and the MONA LISA, each with a capacity of over 3,500 TEU.
In the near future, the service is expected to be further strengthened by the addition of three more container ships, the CAPE HELLAS, WINDSWEPT and BUXFAVOURITE.
The minimum annual traffic permitted is set at 1 TEU/metres-squared of concession plot, so the proposal must meet or exceed this figure.
