MEDITERRANEAN Shipping Company has enhanced its Noumea Shuttle service, adding and shuffling New Zealand leg calls.
“As part of MSC’s optimisation of the Oceania network, we are pleased to announce the enhanced Noumea Express service, providing direct links between Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands,” the line said in a customer advisory.
“The updated rotation now includes Wellington, providing New Zealand shippers with fast direct transit to Australia where further connections are available linking into MSC's global network. Noumea and Fiji shippers will benefit from the upgraded rotation with a quick transit into Tauranga where there are seamless connections available to all global destinations.”
Noumea Express was inaugurated in April 2018 following changes to MSC’s then Capricorn service and the abandonment of the then New Kiwi trans-Tasman service, and initially operated Brisbane, Noumea, Brisbane with one ship on a 10-day rotation. Following the addition of a second ship Port Botany was included and Bell Bay calls were added later, transferred from Capricorn.
In October 2022 Fiji calls were announced, at Suva and Lautoka, and in September 2024 Noumea Express extended to NZ with the addition of Tauranga and Nelson calls, “offering you more options to/from New Caledonia and Fiji”. The revised rotation was Port Botany, Brisbane, Noumea, Suva, Lautoka, Nelson, Tauranga, Port Botany, Bell Bay, Port Botany. Progressively a third and fourth ship were added and the ships employed upsized.
In its latest incarnation the rotation of Noumea Express is Bell Bay, Port Botany, Brisbane, Noumea, Lautoka, Suva, Tauranga, Nelson, Wellington, Port Botany, Bell Bay.
Noumea Shuttle currently employs four geared containerships, the 1,117 TEU Contship Ten, 2,524 TEU MSC Davao III, the 2,546 TEU MSC Lidia and the recently-joined 2,664 TEU MSC Rini III.