HAPAG - LLOYD AG - Experts & Thought Leaders

Watson Farley & Williams advised long-standing client TUI Cruises GmbH on the delivery of the Mein Schiff Relax, the eighth ship in the Mein Schiff series and TUI Cruises’ first to be built at Italy’s Fincantieri shipyard. The Mein Schiff Relax is the first of two InTUItion-class ships being built at Fincantieri for TUI Cruises. The vessel marks a new era for the Mein Schiff experience, setting new standards in terms of comfort, exclusivity and feel-good atmosphere. Its design combines spacious public areas with numerous places to retreat to for maximum relaxation. TUI Cruises’ decarbonisation roadmap WFW advised TUI Cruises on the building contracts, the financing arrangements and the delivery of the ship The Mein Schiff Relax appeals to a very broad target group with its wide range of offers – from single travellers to families. As part of TUI Cruises’ decarbonisation roadmap, the company is committed to using a range of climate-friendly fuels, including biodiesel, biomethanol and bio-LNG, as well as synthetic fuels.  Mein Schiff Relax is equipped with a dual-fuel engine and the first liquefied natural gas ship being able to use bio-LNG in the future. WFW advised TUI Cruises on the building contracts, the financing arrangements, and the delivery of the ship.  Expertise in tourism and cruise industries TUI Cruises was established in April 2008 as a joint venture between TUI AG and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Based in Hamburg, the company combines expertise in the tourism and cruise industries.  It offers cruises in the upper-contemporary/premium, luxury and expedition market segments through two strong, complementary, award-winning brands: Mein Schiff, specialising in the upper-contemporary/premium segment and Hapag Lloyd Cruises, the only luxury brand in the DACH region operating in both the luxury and expedition segments. Addition of Mein Schiff Relax Italy Associate Sergio Napolitano provided on-the-ground assistance at the delivery in Italy With the addition of Mein Schiff Relax, TUI Cruises’ fleet of 13 vessels, with over 24,000 berths, is one of the youngest in the world. The WFW London Assets and Structured Finance team that advised TUI Cruises was led by Partner Lucy Shtenko working closely with fellow Partner Robert Platt and Senior Associates Katie Shiels and Philip Chope. Italy Associate Sergio Napolitano provided on the ground assistance at the delivery in Italy. Delivery of the next Mein Schiff vessel Lucy commented: “We are pleased to have advised TUI Cruises once again on the delivery of its next Mein Schiff vessel. It is great to see such a beautiful and progressive ship added to the fleet." "The WFW team was delighted to continue to support TUI Cruises with this fleet expansion project which again demonstrates our unrivalled reputation for excellence within the maritime and cruise sectors across our international network”.

The two men heading Hapag-Lloyd and Maersk into the new Gemini Cooperation joined together on stage at the Xeneta Summit in Amsterdam to reinforce their confidence in the new alliance achieving its ambition of 90% service reliability. The Gemini Cooperation, which comprises the two ocean container shipping giants, will begin operating on 1 February 2025, with a new hub and spoke approach of mainliner and transshipment services designed to increase reliability. 90% service reliability Rolf Habben Jansen, CEO of Hapag-Lloyd, and Kenni Skotte, Vice President and Head of Ocean Network Product at Maersk, took part in a panel discussion at the Xeneta Summit in Amsterdam on Thursday to answer questions on how Gemini can achieve its ambition of 90% service reliability when global reliability across all ocean container shipping carriers in the market stands at 53%. Skotte said, “We are confident of the 90% number because we believe we can do it. But I recognize when people look at schedule reliability in the market today it’s hard to imagine. If we sit here again next year, we will have a very different discussion because by then we will have been able to prove that it works.” Use of transshipment networks Gemini Cooperation will cover seven trades and offer 57 services including mainliner and dedicated shuttle services Gemini Cooperation will cover seven trades and offer 57 services including mainliner and dedicated shuttle services. Habben Jansen and Skotte both told the Xeneta Summit that increasing the use of transshipment networks will allow for more stable and reliable services for shippers. Habben Jansen said, “Transshipment services are increasing from 35% to 45% but we are going to do it in a much more structured and planned manner at hubs we control ourselves." Hub operations “Hubs have more capacity than is strictly required and that is very much a choice. We don’t operate hubs to make money, we operate hubs to make the network work. More cranes, more space than one would normally do with multiple terminals we can access." “What gives us confidence is the way the whole system has been designed because it’s very much about being able to isolate delays. Whereas today what we tend to see is a delay of one or two delays snowballs into significant delays and that has a ripple effect.” Covering scenarios The Gemini Cooperation recently confirmed its ships will sail around the Cape of Good Hope in Africa The Gemini Cooperation recently confirmed its ships will sail around the Cape of Good Hope in Africa when it begins operating in February due to ongoing conflict in the Red Sea. Both Skotte and Habben Jansen confirmed this will not impact Gemini’s target of 90% reliability. Habben Jansen said, “In today’s challenging environment, our network can cover both scenarios – whether through the Red Sea passage or around the Cape of Good Hope – ensuring we maintain the same industry-pioneering reliability." Hub-and-spoke model “The Gemini Cooperation is designed in response to the evolving needs of our customers in an increasingly dynamic and volatile industry." “In this context, our hub-and-spoke model allows us to operate a lean network by leveraging central hubs, all while preserving the global coverage our customers have come to rely on.” Data and intelligence platform  Skotte added, “We believe our new innovative ocean network will significantly improve schedule reliability to the benefit of our customers and set a new and very high standard in the industry.”  Xeneta is the ocean and airfreight data and intelligence platform and the annual summit brings together hundreds of stakeholders from across the industry for two days of keynote speeches and panel discussions on the most important issues facing global supply chains.

Inmarsat Maritime, a Viasat company, has announced that global container liner shipping group Hapag-Lloyd is among the first to trial NexusWave, the fully managed service that delivers an unparalleled global service orchestrated by bringing together a multi-orbit, multi-band set of connectivity networks as a single network solution.  The trials align with the Hamburg-headquartered shipping group’s requirement for a robust connectivity solution that is capable of meeting increasing communications and security demands, and rising expectations for business and crew communications. NexusWave solution Unique among maritime communications options, the NexusWave solution delivers an “office-like” and “home-like” experience that’s always connected, without having to worry about usage, quota, or speeds by curating various services onboard the vessel to the needs of the owner-operator while providing full transparency on the total cost of ownership, an all-in-one, frictionless solution. NexusWave also offers an upgrade path to the ViaSat-3 network. High-speed Internet connections The crew will be able to access IT services previously only available onshore A series of owner-operator trials aim to verify the way reliable high-speed Internet connections allow critical enterprise/IT functions to move to the cloud instead of maintaining them on vessels so that shipboard personnel can align with office-based colleagues. The crew will be able to access IT services previously only available onshore. Seamless integration Patrick Briest, Senior Director IT – Network & Operations, Hapag-Lloyd, commented, “With NexusWave, our vessels can transform into floating offices, seamlessly integrated with onshore and cloud-based IT systems." "This advancement in connectivity will allow us to further streamline operations through cloud-based solutions, achieving significant cost savings and enhancing crew IT services to match onshore experiences.” SD-WAN technology With business and crew welfare channels maintained separately, the service also enhances crew connectivity Specifically designed to meet customer objectives, the NexusWave service leverages SD-WAN technology to provide intelligent traffic bonding and prioritisation to ensure that mission-critical operations are continuously connected, while also supporting services based on video streaming such as remote inspections. With business and crew welfare channels maintained separately, the service also enhances crew connectivity. Secure, and robust communication NexusWave is designed with security at its core, encrypting traffic at the vessel level and protecting it with advanced enterprise-grade infrastructure, trusted by enterprises and governments worldwide. Gert-Jan Panken, VP of Sales, Inmarsat Maritime, highlighted the strategic value of the NexusWave solution for Hapag-Lloyd, stating, “With NexusWave enhanced connectivity, we can provide our customers with a seamless, secure, and robust communication environment that transforms maritime operations. We are committed to continuing to provide solutions that not only meet but exceed the expectations and needs of our valued customers like Hapag-Lloyd: ensuring their operations are efficient and future-ready.”