Evergreen and Wan Hai Lines launch Taiwan-Philippines-Vietnam joint service

At a signing ceremony held in The Sherwood Taipei Feb. 14, Mr Arnold Wang, President of Evergreen Marine Corporation, and Mr P T Chen, President of Wan Hai Lines, announced the launch of a new joint service covering Taiwan, the Philippines and Vietnam. The service is to start 3 March 2003.
The new Taiwan/Philippines/Vietnam (TMV) service will consist of a 14-day round trip rotation, calling Keelung - Taichung - Manila South Port - Manila North Port - Ho Chi Minh - Kaohsiung - Keelung. The agreement between the lines calls for each to contribute one vessel with capacity for 700TEU; initially, Evergreen will commit the 953TEU Uni-Forward and Wan Hai Lines the 1,008TEU Phong Chau. The first sailing will be made by Phong Chau from Keelung on 3 March 2003.
The decision to launch this latest intra-Asia service is in response to the robust economy in Vietnam. It is also a reflection of the strong working relationship between Evergreen and Wan Hai Lines. Commenting on the decision to introduce the joint service, Mr Wang said:
?he Evergreen Group has been working in cooperation with Wan Hai Lines since February 2002 when we inaugurated a joint service between Japan, Taiwan and Hong Kong. Both sides feel that it has been a very successful venture and based on that experience, we have both decided to expand the scope of our cooperation.
?imed at the boom in Vietnam? import and export business, Evergreen and Wan Hai Lines will work together to provide a high quality service to clients in this trade.?