April 23, 2018 - Sealand, the Intra-Americas regional ocean carrier of the Maersk Group, will operate a new direct, all-water service, the Gulf Ocean Express (GOEX) service, that connects Central America, Panama and Columbia to and from the Port of New Orleans (Port NOLA). The Sealand Tiger cargo vessel makes its inaugural call for the GOEX service at Port NOLA Friday, April 20. The service will call at the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal operated by New Orleans Terminal. The service will include two Sealand vessels and one MSC vessel.
“The new Central America service by Sealand strengthens the Port of New Orleans’ trading position with our partners in both Central and South America,” said Brandy D. Christian, Port of New Orleans President and CEO. “We look forward to working with Sealand and MSC to ensure the service’s success.”
Sealand continues the expansion of its comprehensive Americas service network by adding U.S. Gulf capacity. Port NOLA enables Sealand to address the needs of customers for increased volumes by connecting to major U.S. markets and Canada via 14,500 miles of waterways, six Class I railroads and the interstate highway system.
GOEX serves U.S. export cargo out of the Gulf including resins, paper, mining and metals, and frozen meat, as well as U.S. imports of agricultural products such as fresh fruits, forestry, automotive/transportation, chemicals, and apparel. Additionally, GOEX will serve special cargo (breakbulk/out-of-gauge) out of Houston and New Orleans.
“Sealand continues to invest in the Americas to create trading and sales opportunities for our customers. Reliable transits and service options are critical to ensuring our customers’ transactions are fully supported and create further opportunities for their businesses. Sealand has built a strong reputation for service, and we’ll continue to build on our capabilities as we move forward,” said Craig Mygatt, Sealand CEO. “The GOEX service bridges every country in Latin America through either direct or connecting services. This helps support job creation and infrastructure investments in the U.S. Gulf region, and we are proud to be supported by the ILA as our team on the ground in the USA making it happen.
Sealand transshipment hubs in Cartagena, Columbia and Manzanillo, Mexico provide shippers with full access to Sealand’s Americas service network. The GOEX service rotation and its schedule are as follows:
- Northbound: Cartagena – Manzanillo – Puerto Cortes – Santo Tomas de Castilla – Houston – New Orleans
- Southbound: Houston – New Orleans – Puerto Cortes – Santo Tomas de Castilla – Cartagena – Manzanillo
Source: American Journal of Transportation
