TRANS-ASIA Shipping Lines, now managed by Chelsea Logistics of tycoon Dennis Uy, has launched its 16th vessel to close its “unprecedented” year.
Sheila Fay Sy, vice president for marketing and terminal operations, said the Trans-Asia 20 is a brand new roll-on roll-off ship made in Japan.
The company’s ninth roro vessel will soon serve the Cebu-Cagayan de Oro (CDO)-Cebu route.
Trans-Asia 20 can accommodate as many as 690 passengers and 22 buses and trucks. It can ship 10-and 20-wheeler trucks.
“We’re closing the year with this new vessel. It has been an unprecedented year for us,” she told the media in an interview Thursday, Dec. 5, 2019.
Early this year, the company also launched another brand-new vessel, Trans-Asia 19, which started serving the Cebu-Tagbilaran-CDO route.
“So for this year, we launched two brand-new vessels,” she said.
Sy said the shipping firm is keen on acquiring more new vessels by 2021.
“The earliest next acquisition is 2021,” she said.
Currently, the shipping company serves the ports of Cebu, Iloilo, Cagayan de Oro, Ozamiz, Iligan, Masbate, Tagbilaran, Tacloban, Zamboanga and Manila.
Chelsea Logistics now controls the Cebu-based shipping firm after the former acquired two million common shares in the latter.
The Philippine Competition Commission gave the green light on the deal early this year.