Evergreen and Cosco Shipping have suspended two of the three Ocean Alliance services linking Asia with the Middle East, as the ongoing conflict involving Iran continues to disrupt operations in and around the Gulf.
According to Alphaliner, the Taiwanese and Chinese carriers have withdrawn the MEA4 and MEA5 loops, significantly reducing alliance capacity on the trade lane. The development comes as nearly 150 container ships are reported to be stranded in the Arabian Gulf amid growing instability across the region.
Evergreen, which was the sole operator of the MEA4 service, is gradually phasing out the vessels previously deployed on the loop. The route had connected Shanghai, Ningbo, Kaohsiung, Shekou, Port Kelang, Jebel Ali, Dammam, Umm Qasr and Jebel Ali. Its final voyage is expected to conclude on 7 April, when the 9,466 teu Ever Laden calls at Ningbo. The service had been operated with eight vessels of around 9,500 teu each.
Cosco is also discontinuing the MEA5 service, which it operated alone under the Ocean Alliance. That loop had called Qingdao, Shanghai, Ningbo, Nansha, Singapore, Jebel Ali, Khalifa Seaport and Dammam using seven megamax container ships. According to Alphaliner, only the 19,273 teu Cosco Shipping Aquarius remains active, and is currently waiting to discharge at Sohar in Oman after diverting from its normal routing.
The only dedicated Ocean Alliance service still operating between Asia and the Middle East is the MEA1 loop run by CMA CGM. Rather than entering the Gulf, the service is now turning back towards Asia before the Strait of Hormuz, calling Khor Fakkan in the UAE and Sohar in Oman.
As conventional routes into the Gulf come under pressure, container lines are increasingly exploring alternative options using overland connections from Turkey and Saudi Arabian Red Sea ports. Because of the continuing Houthi security threat in the Red Sea, these services generally travel from Asia via the Cape of Good Hope into the Mediterranean before linking onward through Turkish or Saudi gateways.
