New container shipping line, The Containership Company (TCC), is all set to make its market entry next week with the first eastbound sailing from Taicang to Los Angeles leaving on April 17.
TCC senior vice-president, line manager, Vagn Pedersen confirmed the inaugural sailing date on what will be known as the Great Dragon Service. "We will operate the service with five vessels of approximately 3,000 TEU capacity, and we will run the Great Dragon ourselves. No other line is involved," he said.

      "Of the five vessels needed to operate the service, we have firmly fixed four - Maruba Enterprise (2,578 TEU), Champion (2,080 TEU), Conti Harmony (2,890 TEU), and California Senator (3,017 TEU) and have the fifth vessel on 'subjects to be lifted shortly' that allows us to run a weekly schedule," Pedersen said.

     There has been continued talk of launching both an Asia-Europe and a second Asia-US West Coast service, the latter concentrating on Southeast Asia and southern China, but this was not confirmed by the carrier.