The Yokohama Port and Habour Bureau, Yokohama-Kawasaki International Port Corporation and Yokohama Port Corporation have paid tribute to APL for its contributions as one of Japan’s longest-serving shipping lines. As APL celebrates 150 years of shipping in Japan, the carrier also renews its commitment towards the advancement of the country’s maritime sector.
APL Chief Executive Officer, Nicolas Sartini said, “Japan is strategic to APL’s Intra-Asia developments and we will build on our 150-year-old foundation which few can claim to own. We have navigated in line with Japan’s global trade ambitions and will continue to facilitate trade with new service routes and shipping solutions. APL looks to further collaborations with the authorities and shippers in Japan so that we can all achieve meaningful milestones in the next 150 years.”
APL currently connects Japan with her key trade partners such as Australia, China, Korea, North America, Taiwan and Thailand amongst others through 13 services. Amongst these services, APL’s Japan Express service (JPX) directly connects Japan with the United States West Coast while its Japan Straits Express service (JSX) is a choice option for shippers who seek global market access via Singapore.
Facilitating Japan’s trade growth with China and Southeast Asia countries, shippers are offered various ways to their respective target markets through APL’s Thailand Vietnam service (JTV), Japan Thailand 2 service (JT2) and Japan Thailand 5 service (JT5) amongst others.
As Japan ramps-up her export drive, APL’s Out-Of-Gauge and SMART reefer expertise offers solutions to take Japanese products to places. In particular, APL customises the application of its reefer solutions through trials with shippers. In Japan, APL provides technical support that lends expertise in facilitating the exploration of export markets by Japanese agricultural producers.
Japan is also home to APL’s wholly-owned terminal in the port of Yokohama, an important gateway for nine APL services that serve the Trans-Pacific and Intra-Asia trades. With a linear quay length of 400 metres and draft of 16 metres for its cargo berth, the 45 acre facility is equipped with an annual capacity of 540,000 Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEU). With a productivity rate of 38 container moves per hour, APL continually ensures a superior terminal efficiency that adds to the competitiveness of the Yokohama Port. Plans are underway to further upgrade the terminal operating system in 2018.
Sartini added, “APL will persist in building a more robust network and strengthen our operations to keep delivering value in markets where we serve. We also believe in staying accessible to our customers and will continually engage them in serving their needs.”
Today, APL is supported by more than 100 employees in three offices across Tokyo, Osaka, and Yokohama.