Sea Star Line exploring adding Puerto Rico barge service
Sea Star, one of Puerto Rico’s main maritime cargo carriers, is considering adding container barge service next year.
Sea Star Line, LLC announced Monday its intention to add a weekly container barge service to its existing sailing schedule. The announcement comes about a month after rival Horizon Lines confirmed plans to cease providing liner service to Puerto Rico by the end of 2014.
Sea Star’s container barge service would complement its existing twice-weekly vessel offering with a total additional capacity of 800 40-foot equivalent units. This new service would launch early in 2015.
“Sea Star Line is committed to meeting the needs of Puerto Rico. We know that people depend on the weekly shipments that supply food, medicine, and other commodities,” noted Tim Nolan, president of Sea Star Line.
“We want to ensure that changes happening in the market do not negatively affect daily life in Puerto Rico and are exploring the best options for consistent, reliable service in 2015,” he noted.
Sea Star Line is taking proactive steps to ensure sufficient capacity for cargo in the months ahead. More information will be available as details are finalized in the coming weeks, the company said.
In mid-November, Horizon Lines said it would end cargo services between Puerto Rico and the U.S. mainland after 56 years, citing “continuing losses without the prospect of future profitability.”
The company also announced it had entered into definitive agreements for a series of transactions that would result in the sale of the entire company.
