The South Korean shipowner HMM will open a new regular shipping service from India to East Africa from the fourth week of September 2026. Named Gulf India East Africa (GIA), this link will serve the Indian ports of Nhava Sheva and Mundra, as well as Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Mombasa, Kenya, in order to strengthen trade between these markets.

The new service will be provided by five container carriers with a capacity of 2800 TEUs (equivalent to 20 feet). The planned rotation will successively link Nhava Sheva, Mundra, Dar es Salaam and Mombasa, with a first scheduled start from Nhava Sheva.

The operation will be carried out jointly by HMM, COSCO Shipping, Pacific International Lines (PIL) and Interasia Lines. The partners also plan to extend this service to the Gulf ports later, subject to market conditions.

This new line is the second African network developed by HMM according to its model « hub and spoke », which combines large vessels on major international shipping routes and regional redistributive services.

After the launch of the MA2 service linking the Mediterranean to North and West Africa via Algesiras, the company expanded its presence on the continent by integrating two of the main gateways to East Africa.

According to HMM, this new service meets the growing demand of shippers for more reliable services and better connectivity in a context of persistent uncertainties on global supply chains.

The company also stresses that the development of inland port infrastructure and logistics networks in Kenya and Tanzania should support trade between India, Central Asia and East Africa.

This initiative is finally part of its fleet development plan, which plans to reach a total capacity of 1.47 million TEUs spread over 166 vessels by 2030.