Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd., Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd., and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha today announced that their new joint venture company, Ocean Network Express Pte. Ltd., established in July 2017, has received all necessary merger approvals from local competition authorities in regions and countries where such approvals are required for the launch of service by the newly established joint venture company.

MOL: Notice of Completion of Necessary Legal Process in All Countries/Regions for New JV in the Container Shipping Business
Caption: Container ship MOL Grandeur - Image courtesy Juan Carlos

As announced on July 3, 2017, the Joint Venture company had completed the approval process in all regions and countries except South Africa as of the end of June 2017.

Following continued negotiations with the competition authority in that country, the JV company today obtained approval with conditions requiring measures regarding competition law compliance.

The service commencement schedule for the new company remains unchanged, with operations slated to begin on April 1, 2018.

Source: MOL