UAL AND BOCS ORDER NEWBUILDINGS TO STRENGTHEN THEIR LINER SERVICES
Bremen, 13.05.2025 - Universal Africa Lines and BOCS are investing in the future: They proudly announce the order of two multipurpose vessels with a length of 140 m / 12,000 dwt from New JiangZhou Shipbuilding Heavy Industry Co. Ltd. These vessels meet the stringent EEDI Phase 3 and IMO Tier III requirements for NOx emissions and underline UAL & BOCS' commitment to environmental sustainability. The newbuildings are characterized by modern propulsion technologies and optimized energy efficiency to reduce the overall environmental impact of the fleets.
The new MPPs are designed to further expand the well established Liner Service ‘UBSL Mediterranean’ and the newly launched Service ‘UBSL Caribbean’, which connects Europe and the Caribbean as well as the East Coast of South America and the US Gulf. All in all they aim to strengthen the UAL & BOCS market position by offering additional possibilities for our clientele. Delivery is planned for the 4th quarter of 2026.
“With this investment, we are setting a clear signal for development, efficiency and sustainability,” explains Bjoern Hollnagel, Managing Director of BOCS. “The newbuildings will not only expand our capacities but also make a significant contribution to our strategy of offering modern and environmentally conscious logistics solutions.”
“We are very excited to further strengthen the cooperation between BOCS and UAL by expanding the UBSL brand”, says Harald Maas Managing Director of UAL, “together we are setting sail for the future”.
With the fleet expansion, UAL & BOCS are responding to the increasing demand for reliable and sustainable transport solutions in the liner service market and thus continuing the consistent implementation of the corporate strategies.
Read official release document here.
After years of operating the successful liner service from the Mediterranean and Black Sea to West Africa and back, UBSL is now expanding into servicing the Caribbean and the East Coast of South America. UBSL Caribbean Line is a joint venture between BOCS Bremen and Universal Africa Lines.
UBSL Caribbean Lines head office will be based in Capelle /d Ijssel in the Netherlands and will use the existing fleet of its joint venture partners, BOCS and UAL.
Together, the new service can draw on 21 modern geared MPP vessels ranging from 4.354 dwt to 33.000 dwt, equipped with ships gear up to 360 mt lifting capacity.
The service will start with monthly sailings, and regular loading port of calls will consist of Aberdeen and Antwerp with other ports along the route on inducement.
Discharge ports will be La Brea and Point Lisas in Trinidad, Georgetown Guyana, Paramaribo Suriname, and this service can be further extended to Brazil based on inducement.
“Having the chance to expand trading routes and respectively our network certainly is a great opportunity. Openness, flexibility and customer proximity have always built the core of our business activities. Our clientele will not only benefit from an extended service, but also from our well-established collaboration with UAL. We are enthusiastic about this new challenge and look forward to continuing our joint success story.” says Björn Hollnagel, Managing Director of BOCS.
“Universal Africa Lines has been running a liner service from the USA to the Caribs and South America already, and has seen a growing demand from its clients for a similar service originating in NW Europe. So it was only logical after our joint venture in the Mediterranean that we would start this new adventure together with our good partner BOCS. We will continue to build on our success” says Harald Maas, Director of Universal Africa Lines.
For any inquiries please contact:
UBSL Caribbean Line B.V.
Rivium Plaza, Rivium Boulevard 1,
2909 LK Capelle a/d IJssel,
Netherlands
Phone: +31 10 2020 111
Mail: rates@ubsl-cl.com
Universal Africa Lines (UAL), a shipping company known for its specialized services in the oil and gas sector, announced its strategic expansion into Guyana and the broader Latin America region, at the ongoing Guyana Energy Conference and Supply Chain Expo 2024. The move is huge for UAL, aiming to leverage its expertise and long-standing relationships in the industry to cater to the growing energy sector in Guyana.
Brittany Clark, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of UAL AMERICA, told OilNOW about the company’s legacy serving West Africa. “We’re Universal Africa Lines (UAL), and we’ve been sailing ships into West Africa for the past 50 years… we have a lot of the same clients that have started moving into Guyana. So because of the synergies there, it made sense for us to then expand our territory into not only Guyana but into Brazil and the whole South America region,” Clark stated.
The EU ETS is an emissions cap-and-trade system that aims to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by setting a limit, or cap, on GHG emissions for certain sectors of the economy.
Each year, a limited number of EU Allowances (EUAs) is made available for trading in the market, and this is reduced yearly in order for the EU to meet its target of a 55% reduction in GHG emissions by 2030 relative to 1990, and net zero by 2050.
Each EUA gives companies a right to emit GHG emissions equivalent to the global warming potential of one tonne of CO2 equivalent.
As of 1st October 2023, Universal Africa Lines B.V. is pleased to welcome Mrs. Tania Galli as a new member of the Board of Directors. This promotion is a testament to UAL’s commitment to recognizing and fostering talent within our organization.
Mrs. Galli, who has been the head of legal and an integral part of the UAL team for the past 12 years, during her tenure has repeatedly demonstrated her dedication and capabilities in managing complex legal challenges, navigating regulatory compliance and protecting UAL’s interests.
Mr. Jungblut, CEO of Universal Africa Lines B.V. and Chairman of the board, has expressed his confidence in Mrs. Galli stating "Her longstanding expertise in our very niche business in West Africa makes her the right candidate to strengthen our management team and it will allow our group to further expand its services while maintaining our high standards. We are very happy to have her on our board, as we look positively to the future in these exciting times".
Please join us in congratulating Mrs. Galli to her appointment as Director. We are confident that her dedication, expertise and pursuit of excellence will undoubtedly continue to propel UAL B.V. towards a future of success.
p.p. Board of Directors Universal Africa Lines B.V.
UPDATE 12 October 2023: The turmoil that affected Gabon has now been resolved.
In light of the recent developments in Gabon, UAL is closely monitoring the situation and shall keep their clients advised of any developments. The safety of the crew, vessels and cargo remains our priority however, to date we see no reason to cancel the scheduled sailing to Gabon as we expect the situation to stabilize in the short term.
If, however, this changes we shall inform all the relevant parties immediately.
As from 1st of December 2022 BOCS Bremen Overseas Chartering and Shipping (BOCS) and Universal Africa Lines (UAL) will be represented by the new set-up African Agency Alliance BV (AAA) in the port of Antwerp.
AAA will act as liner agency for both shipping lines. A well experienced, professional, and dedicated team with genuine local knowledge will assure a smooth handling of all operations within the port of Antwerp.
“The formation of this new dedicated Africa liner agency will further enhance the quality of customer service for our clients, and we feel that there is a serious benefit from all the years of combined Africa experience it offers. UAL is proud to be commercially represented by AAA in our European main port of Antwerp”, says Harald Maas, Managing Director of UAL.”
BOCS is very pleased to announce the new cooperation with AAA. The port of Antwerp is to be considered as one of our main European destinations. Our clientele will benefit from optimized services through synergetic effects, as AAA is dedicated to carriers with main destination West Africa”, states Björn Hollnagel, Managing Director of BOCS.
The first BOCS vessel handled by AAA at Antwerp port will be the MV BOCS SPIRIT voyage 22521, whereas for UAL it will be the MV UAL OSPREY, arriving December 8th in Antwerp.
Please find hereunder the contact details of AAA in Antwerp:
AFRICAN AGENCY ALLIANCE BV
Noorderlaan 29
2030 Antwerpen
BELGIUM
Contact persons:
Commercial Line Manager BOCS
Mr. Freddy Verreyken
Direct line: +32 (0)3 270 90 42
Mobile phone: +32 47 47 10 49 8
Email: bocs@african-agency-alliance.com
Commercial Line Manager UAL
Mr. Koen Van Belle
Direct line: +32 (0)3 270 90 47
Mobile phone: +32 49 65 20 61 1
Email: ual@african-agency-alliance.com
We are pleased to present Universal Africa Lines with the Best Sustainable Stand award at AntwerpXL 2022!
Universal Africa Lines (UAL) have won the sustainability award for their hard work and dedication to ecological sustainability. They are one of the first companies to commission to build, five of their own ‘Eco-Trader’ vessels, which have a substantially reduced draft, and consequently, are more fuel efficient. They have also expanded their investment into preserving basic resources, like water, with their award-winning Ecoaguas Plant.
We, Universal Africa Lines B.V., are proud to announce that we have increased our fleet and will now be 15 vessels strong! A new Landing craft (LCT) has joined our heavy geared MPV’s so we can offer more variety to our clients. This also means that after 5 years, UAL again has a ‘UAL Trader’ in their midst.
A landing craft unlike any other with space to hold approximately 430 TEU which is ideal for transportation of containers to shallow draft ports. With an LOA of 99,80 mtrs and a beam of 25 mtrs, the ‘UAL Trader’ is a welcome addition to better serve our valued clients.
She is currently heading into dry dock for a month and will be available in the Atlantic corridor afterwards.
