A 6,800 20-foot equivalent unit (TEU) cargo ship has made its maiden call to Abu Dhabi’s Khalifa Port Container Terminal (KPCT).

The Hyundai Bangkok, owned by South Korea’s Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM), reached the port on 5 September.

It marks the fourth new service calling at KPCT since the start of 2015, according to a company statement.

The new Korea-Middle East Service (KMS) essentially increases HMM’s weekly port rotation between its home country and the greater Far East region and the GCC. It also increases the frequency of direct international destinations from Abu Dhabi, providing more choices for GCC-focused import and export companies.

The KMS service rotation will now include Kwang Yang, Busan, Ningbo, Kaohsiung, Yantian, Hong Kong, Singapore, Port Kelang, Jebel Ali, Khalifa Port, Bandar Abbas and Karachi.

The new service shows “we are determined to continue our growth by expanding our services and providing more value to shipping lines, trade and logistics customers”, says Simon Brebner, chief commercial officer at Abu Dhabi Terminals (ADT).

ADT, a joint venture of Abu Dhabi Ports, Mubadala and Mubadala Infrastructure Partners, won a 30-year concession to manage and operate the port in 2012. ADT says it has grown its business 20 per cent year-on-year since.