Swire Shipping is reviewing enhancements to its Australia and Pacific service, following its initial announcement to provide an 18-day turnaround time for the 10 stops it had outlined.

Swire Shipping’s commercial manager Pacific Islands Iain Stewart made the comment yesterday, saying a few more details were yet to be decided.

Swire Shipping’s published schedule for the service does not name the second vessel.

Swire Shipping had said two vessels would service the route, including the MV Kokopo Chief.

Performance Flotation Development, a Nabua-based manufacturer of exported lifejackets, initially hailed the announcement, as the company traded heavily with Australia. But managing director Mike Towler later said the time frame provided on the 20-day schedule suggested the vessel was going somewhere else after Tonga, as the normal time frame between Tonga and Melbourne was only seven days.

The schedule showed it as being 14 days.

SunBiz was then informed by Swire Shipping that the rotation timeline had changed to 18 days.

“Either the captain is trawling for Yellow Fin tuna somewhere in theSouth Pacific, or they are going via New Zealand,” Mr Towler said. Swire Shipping had on April 1, announced an upgraded service between Australia and Pacific island countries, given the termination of the operational slot charter agreement between them, Neptune Pacific Direct Line and Pacific Forum Line.

The operational slot charter agreement ends in May.

Swire Shipping’s Australia and Pacific Islands routes will be an independent service that commences from the start of May.

The independent service will sail from Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Noumea, Port Vila, Lautoka, Suva, Apia, Pago Pago and Nuku’alofa.

Feedback: frederica.elbourne@fijisun.com.fj