ONE making ocean freight slots visible on digital exchange

Ocean Network Express (ONE) said it will start offering container slots on a digital exchange as it seeks to “further enhance customer experience.” 

The joint venture of Japan’s three largest shipping companies, ONE will tap the New York Shipping Exchange (NYSHEX) to offer trans-Pacific eastbound container space. January sailing slots will be available on the platform from mid-December onward, it said. 

NYSHEX’s platform offers shippers a guaranteed space and rate for booking ocean freight with steamship lines. The mutually enforceable contract requires that the liner operator not roll the cargo to another sailing and the shipper actually have the cargo at the dock in time for the sailing. 

“Having our customer’s commitment to show up with their cargo as contracted allows us to optimize our network and more accurately plan our vessels, which in turn provides cost-effective and reliable services,” said Sundeep Sibal, senior vice president at ONE.

ONE did not say how much space it will be offering on the platform. NYSHEX said that ONE’s offers on the platform will be dynamic, meaning they can adjust the price and the allocation in real time.

ONE has 14 services running between China and the U.S. on the trans-Pacific lane. Through October, ONE had average monthly container liftings of 230,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) on its trans-Pacific eastbound services, with utilization averaging 90%.     

“We are thrilled to welcome ONE as a carrier member of the exchange,” said Gordon Downes, chief executive of NYSHEX. “The ONE approach to container shipping today is refreshing and relevant. We look forward to the continued collaboration and innovation.” 

ONE joins NYSHEX’s other carrier members, which include Maersk, Hapag Lloyd, CMA CGM, MOL, OOCL and COSCO. 

Since its August 2017 launch, NYSHEX’s platform has handled over 75,000 TEU in bookings. It said it will enhance its platform in 2020 to support more customizable terms for carriers and shippers, including multiple origins and destinations and longer valid dates for a contract.