Box ship service connecting Taiwan – Madras – Taiwan. Heard of Sri City !!

Perhaps you would hear more about this place – Sri city – if you had not heard much before.  Located along National Highway 5, about 55 km north of Chennai, Sri City is a world-class Integrated Business City spread over 100 sq km, and developed to offer holistic solutions for business and lifestyle.

This place is in the  State of Andhra Pradesh on the southern border abutting the State of Tamil Nadu.  It lies about 55 km North of Chennai on NH 5.  Much of Sricity area is in Chittoor District and a smaller area in Nellore District of AP, adjacent to Tiruvallur District.  The Satish Dhawan Space Centre (aka SHAR), India’s Satellite/Rocket launching centre is located at Sriharikota, on the eastern side of the Pulicat Lake which separates Sricity and the Satellite launching station.   It is a city purportedly having futuristic planning based on the sustainable urbanisation principles allowing room for expansion.  The workzone includes a SEZ (special economic zone).  Sricity has an interesting past with many monuments, memorial rocks and memorials dating back to over 1000 years. 

Sricity is situated between North Latitudes of 13°29’50” & 13°34’40” and East Longitudes of 79°57’30” & 80°02’50”,at an average elevation of about 20 metres above MSL (66 ft).  The Name Sricity is inspired by the title SRI derived from Sanskrit. Sri is the sacred sound of cosmic auspiciousness and abundance in Hindu religion. Written as Sri or Shree or Sree or Shri, it stands for abundance, auspiciousness, affluence, grace, wealth, light, luster, splendor, beauty, loveliness and authority.  The symbol has been used since Vedic times. Holiness is attached to the word when written or spoken. It is also added before a name to show respect.

The city and port of Chennai is another place which has long history which has grown with the commercial enterprise of British traders – the English East India Company, the local nayaks.  The Port is expanding and bustling with activity.  During Sept. 2010, I had written about the launch of the Far East – Chennai weekly service known as Chennai Express (CHX) service.  Then in Mar 2011,  Maersk launched direct service to North Europe from the Chennai Container Terminal in Chennai Port and named it  ICON providing  direct and faster coverage from Chennai Port to North Europe. 

Now something more added -  Three global shipping lines – Wan Hai Lines, Evergreen Line and Interasia Lines –  are jointly launching  a container shipping service connecting Taiwan with Chennai to give a fillip to the increased trade between Taiwan and southern India, especially in and around Chennai. The weekly service, called TMT (Taiwan-Madras-Taiwan) is to consist of  four 1,300 TEU (twenty foot equivalent unit) vessels with two operated by the Taiwan-based Wan Hai and one by Evergreen and Interasia each.  The maiden voyage by the container vessel, Karin Schulte, operated by Interasia, started  from Taichung recently.

This service is scheduled to run on 28 day basis with rotation calling at  Taichung, Keelung, Hong Kong, Hong Kong (mid-stream), Nansha, Shekou, Port Klang and Chennai.  In the return direction from Chennai, the service will call at Penang, Port Klang, Singapore, Yantian, Hong Kong and Taichung.  As per reports available, the weekly service  is to call at DP World Chennai private container terminal.

For the Taiwanese companies, India looks to be an attractive destination especially in the fields of electronic, machinery and auto components.  Newspaper reports reportedly put the expected figures at 750 TEUs whilst the outbound including the empty boxes which have to return to their origin at around 200 TEUs.  Though the direct volume between Chennai and Taiwan could be less, some could be from China where Taiwanest companies have operations.    Taiwan also has presence in the form of the upcoming Taiwan Formosa Industrial Park in the SEZ at Sri City in Andhra Pradesh.  

Taiwan (earlier known as Formosa) is an island situated in East Asia in the Western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China.  It is separated by the Taiwan strait.  History has it that Taiwan was ceded to the Empire of Japan by the Qing Empire in the Treaty of Shimonoseki after the First Sino-Japanese War in 1895. In 1945 Taiwan was freed from Japan as a result of World War II. Four years later the ROC lost mainland China.

Geographically, the distance between Taiwan and Chennai is around 4055 nautical miles and at a speed of 10 knots would take 17 days for a voyage.

Regards – S. Sampathkumar.