An Iranian container ship is heading to Europe for the first time in five years, marking Tehran’s return to international markets after the lifting of sanctions, an official says.
Chairman of the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) Mohammad Saeidi said he expects the ship, carrying a cargo of petrochemical products, to call at European ports in the “next few days.”
“This is a big event as we managed to revive shipping to Europe after five years, thanks to the efforts of our management and staff, and unlock the sea transportation lock to Europe,” he said, quoted by the Mehr news agency.
“Fortunately, with the lifting of sanctions and implementation of the JCPOA (nuclear agreement) over the past five months…we managed to reopen the sea link and shipping routes to Europe,” he added.
IRISL has successfully lobbied with Germany and Italy to establish a joint shipping company to cover northern and southern Europe with their services, Saeidi added.
IRISL is also planning to establish a “regular” shipping link between Persian Gulf and Latin American ports as well as a “sustainable shipping route” running between Latin American and East Asian ports, Saeidi added.
“Furthermore, we are working out plans for Central and North American ports with the centrality of Canada and hope to accomplish this important task after the lifting of sanctions by the Canadian government.”
IRISL’s current fleet includes 160 container vessels, dry bulk carriers and tankers ships with a capacity of over 5 million TEUs, which the company plans to expand. In October, IRISL said it was seeking to expand its fleet of container ships by 579,000 TEUs by 2020.
Saeidi said negotiations were underway with both foreign and domestic builders. The official has said his company wanted to put out orders for Triple E vessels which can carry more than 18,000 containers.
Iran’s biggest operator has 41 container ships of up to 14,000 containers, but IRISL wants to join the big league and Triple Es are a priority, he said.
Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines was established in 1967 and commenced its commercial operation by employing two home trade vessels and 4 larger ocean going vessels.
Presently, IRISL Group with around half a century experience in worldwide marine transportation field and employing a reliable international network is well-known to its clients as their global partner, capable in performing a wide spectrum of services and steps up beyond expectation of customers.
- Fleet
By employing a range of vessels with diversity in type and tonnage, meets market demands appropriately in main international shipping routes and allocates part of its tonnage efficiently for Door-to-Door services as well as cargo operation in major renowned ports all over the world to her specialized affiliates.
- Commerce
IRISL group, in order to acquire an appropriate share of international seaborne trade, has established significant various shipping lines from Persian Gulf to Far East, South Mediterranean Sea, South America and African ports and is standing as one of the leading companies in container transportation in the region.
- Structure
IRISL Holding, as the main structure in country’s sea transportation sector, by exploiting an extensive network of regional offices and agencies all around the world, serves the interests of its clients to its best.
The Holding company has entrusted the technical ship management of the vessels as well as their commercial operations.
Release Date 28 Feb 2016
