Sinokor will launch Pyoungtaek/Hongkong trade

Container trade will open, departing from Pyoungtaek. Sinokor Merchant Marine Co., will deploy a container vessel with a capacity of 431 TEU, the "Nord Sund", October 28th, for the first time in Pyoungtaek, southwestern Korea, starting the Pyoungtaek/Hongkong trade. By inviting a regular container liner, the Port of Pyoungtaek would like to be busier as it has been idle due to labor union problems.

This service will be a fixed-day weekly service to include Pyoungtaek in the existing Incheon-Kwangyang-Hongkong trade. The Xiang Peng, a 573 TEU capacity vessel, will also serve at this port.

The Port of Pyoungtaek has still not been equipped with a private container terminal. The No.1 berth is used only by Pohang Steel corp., with the No. 3 and 4 berths exclusively for Kia Motors. The No. 2 berth will be available for container vessels and general purposes.

Stevedoring will be made available by Pyoungtaek Ports Corp., a consortium of 6 companies, and overland transport by Sunkwang Corp.

An official from Sinokor Maritime said that the labor union problem was solved, and stevedoring, custom clearances, and inspections will be available in the Port of Pyoungtaek.

The ceremony celebrating the opening of the Pyoungtaek/Hongkong trade route will be held at the Port of Pyoungtaek November 9th.

Sinokor Merchant expects that this trade will benefit central Korea shippers by saving logistic costs. For logistic cost savings, it needs to have a container oriented terminal, the company added.