CSAV Norasia has enchanced its Asia Black Sea (ABS) service by adding more port calls and deploying an extra ship, according to a company statement.

Starting early March the service will be upgraded to eight vessels and will make extra calls in Xingang and Qingdao in northern China and eastbound calls in Jeddah and Chiwan.

After the service enhancement, CSAV Norasia will operate seven of the eight vessels on the service with an average capacity of 4,200 TEU.

The port rotation will be: Xingang, Qingdao, Shanghai, Ningbo, Keelung, Chiwan, Port Klang, Jeddah, Port Said, Constanza, Odessa, Istanbul, Port Said, Jeddah, Colombo, Port Klang, Chiwan and Xingang.

The shipping line said the addition of Xingang and Qingdao in northern China means that the ABS is now able to offer a direct service from this fast growing region to the Black Sea and eastern Mediterranean. Xingang to Constanza will have a transit time of 25 days, while Qingdao to Odessa will be 26 days.

With this extended coverage northern, central, and southern China now all have direct and reliable access to the Black Sea and eastern Mediterranean regions.

The new port call in Jeddah is available on the eastbound leg of the service and opens up the Red Sea for direct shipments while a connection to CSAV Norasia's IMEX service will offer access to the UAE via Jebel Ali and India at Mundra and Nhava Sheva.