Incheon-Indonesia Route Launched: "Expected to Generate 120,000 TEU Annually"

A new container route connecting Incheon Port and Indonesia has been launched.

The Incheon Port Authority (IPA) announced on January 14 that the KCI (Korea-China-Indonesia) regular container service has begun operations.

This route circulates between Incheon Port, Qingdao in China, Shanghai, Jakarta and Surabaya in Indonesia, Shekou in China, Busan, and back to Incheon. Four container vessels with capacities ranging from 2,200 to 2,954 TEU (1 TEU is equivalent to one 20-foot container) will operate once a week.

A view of Hanjin Incheon Container Terminal at Incheon New Port. Provided by Incheon Port Authority

For the inaugural voyage, Interasia Line's "Interasia Engage" (2,200 TEU class) docked at Hanjin Incheon Container Terminal the previous day. Subsequently, vessels from TS Lines, GSL, and Namsung Shipping will be deployed in sequence.

The IPA expects that the opening of this route will significantly improve logistics accessibility for exports and imports, particularly in the Jakarta and Surabaya regions of Indonesia. In particular, the authority projects that more than 120,000 TEU of annual cargo volume will be generated, focusing on export cargo such as waste paper and polyvinyl chloride (PVC), as well as imported furniture from Shekou, China.

Lee Kyungkyu, President of IPA, stated, "The launch of the new Indonesia route marks an important starting point connecting the high-growth Southeast Asian market with Incheon Port. We will continue to actively market to new growth markets and support export and import companies in the Seoul metropolitan area."

Meanwhile, last year Incheon Port opened nine new container routes, bringing the total number of regular container routes in operation to 72.