The Port of Greenock has received a new weekly deep-sea container service that will directly connect Scotland to Turkey’s Mediterranean market.
The new call on the Mediterranean Shipping Company’s Turkey-to-and-from-UK West Coast service is an expansion of the existing route, which already stops at the Port of Liverpool.
According to owner Peel Ports, the inclusion of the Port of Greenock to the route validates the port’s market-leading offering, which was bolstered by the owner’s recent £25 million ($31 million) investment in two new ship-to-shore (STS) cranes capable of servicing bigger post-panamax containerships.
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The route expansion provides a tempting alternative for direct maritime access for exporters and importers to and from Scotland. The MSC Freeport arrived in the port on 22 April as part of the weekly service and departed on 23 April.
The new service rotation, which also includes Spain, Portugal, and France, will significantly improve sea-borne connectivity from Scotland to the Far East, India, and Pakistan, with a reliable direct mother vessel to mother vessel transshipment connection in Sines, and will help to decarbonise the supply chain.
According to Peel Ports, the new service will promote Scottish exports, including whisky and other alcohol kinds, as well as imports of food, packaging materials, and manufactured goods.
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Jim McSporran, Port Director at Peel Ports Clydeport, said: “It’s fantastic to have this vote of confidence in the Port of Greenock, and we look forward to welcoming this game-changing new service to Scotland.
“This direct call will increase trade between Scotland and Turkey, while also providing enhanced UK west coast connectivity, as well as connectivity to the more distant markets in the US and Asia. It will also serve to reduce both transit times and carbon emissions in the supply chain, to and from Scotland.
“With 17 metres higher and 7.5 metres longer outreach than the current cranes, we will be able to service significantly higher on-deck stowage and broader beam.”
