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OOCL launches China-Indonesia service that will help Davao durian exporters
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The new China Indonesia Service 2 (CIS2) launched on June 20 has Davao in the the backhaul of the service loop, likely speeding up the Philippine durian exports’ voyage to China
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CIS2 directly connects multiple ports in China with Indonesia and Philippines to cater for the growing market demand
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For Davao durian exporters, the new service is auspicious as it connects them to their market
Orient Overseas Container Line’s (OOCL) new service eases Philippine durian exporters’ shipping of the fragrant fruit to the Chinese market by adding a call at Davao port on its backhaul voyage from Indonesia to Shanghai.
OOCL launched the new China Indonesia Service 2 (CIS2) on June 20 from Shanghai, the financial and industrial hub of China, with the Davao the sixth port of call port on the service loop.
The CIS2 port rotation is Shanghai-Ningbo-Shekou-Jakarta-Surabaya-Davao-Kaohsiung-Shanghai, OOCL announced in a press statement.
The Hong Kong-based shipping line, one of the world’s major liner companies and a member of the Ocean Alliance, said the opening of the CIS2 service would strengthen the company’s China to Indonesia Service (CIS) network.
“To supplement CIS, CIS2 will further enhance the network coverage between China, Indonesia and Philippines, providing customers with competitive and reliable shipment options,” OOCL said in an announcement on its website.
“CIS2 directly connects multiple ports in China with Indonesia and Philippines to cater for the increasing demand in the market,” OOCL said.
Exporters from Davao and surrounding provinces can now take advantage of the new service to ship their produce to both Taiwan and China, as the ship rotation strings the Davao, Kaohsiung and Shanghai ports on the backhaul.
Davao produce exporters now have a new route to ship their durians and other fruits to either China or Taiwan, two destinations in the rotation that prize expensive tropical fruits.
Durian farmers received a boost early this year when President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed a fruit export agreement with China worth $2 billion during his visit to Beijing. Philippine durians that made up the first shipments to China in April came from registered orchards in Davao City, Davao del Sur and North Cotabato.
Four Chinese companies, including Dole (Shanghai) Fruits and Vegetables Trading Co. Ltd., Shanghai Goodfarmer Group, and Dashang Group, have committed to import Philippine durians. The Philippines is expected to export $260 million worth of the fruit to China in 2023.
OOCL’s new Indonesia service with Davao in the loop is thus well positioned to capture a sizeable share of the more than 50,000 metric tons of durians that the province produces each year. With the peak harvest season for the fruit coming in July, the timing of the CIS2 launch is just right.
