Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd Add Another Joint Service to Suez Canal Route

by Ship & Bunker News Team
Monday July 6, 2026

Container shipping lines A.P Moller-Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd are adding another joint container service to the Suez Canal route.

The AE15 service, connecting Asia, the Mediterranean and Europe, will sail via the Suez Canal instead of the Cape of Good Hope, Maersk said in a customer advisory on Monday.

The Majestic Maersk will make the first sailing on the revised route.

The move extends the carriers' gradual return to the corridor under their Gemini Cooperation shared shipping service. 

In February, the companies rerouted their IMX service, which connects India, the Middle East and the Mediterranean, through the Suez Canal after improving security conditions in the Red Sea.

"The Suez Canal is a vital maritime corridor between East and West and a key driver of efficient global supply chains," Maersk said in its advisory.

"The route through the Suez and the Red Sea is the fastest, most sustainable and most efficient way to serve customers with transport between Asia and Europe."

Leading shipping companies have been avoiding the Red Sea and the Suez Canal for the past two years because of attacks on commercial shipping in the area from Yemen's Houthi movement.

The effect has been to force ships to take longer voyages around Africa, raising global bunker demand. With attacks having largely stopped in recent months, a return to Suez could begin to ease bunker demand, provided security conditions remain stable.

The Gemini Cooperation was launched in 2024 as a long-term operational collaboration under which the two companies share vessel capacity.

Ship & Bunker News Team
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