India's VOC Port Welcomes First Call of Vietnam Service

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On November 7, the Vietnamese-flagged container ship "HAIAN ALFA" made its first call at the Dakshin Bharat Gateway Terminal (DBGT) at V.O. Chidambaranar Port (VOC Port) in India, officially connecting the port to the CVI container liner service linking India, Vietnam, China and Malaysia. Operated by Samsara Shipping, the service runs on a fortnightly schedule, connecting Tuticorin, Chennai, Ho Chi Minh City, Hai Phong, Qinzhou and Port Klang, adding a container transport corridor from southern India to the Vietnamese and Southeast Asian markets.

On this maiden call, "HAIAN ALFA" handled 823 TEU at DBGT, including 723 TEU of import cargo, mainly serving cargo related to Vietnamese automaker VinFast; the remaining 100 TEU was transit cargo destined for Colombo, Sri Lanka. The vessel flies the Vietnamese flag, has a maximum container capacity of 1,781 TEU, and measures 171.9 meters in length and 28.4 meters in beam.

Under the service schedule, the sea transit time from Tuticorin to Ho Chi Minh City is about 7 days, and about 10 days to Hai Phong, Vietnam. The fortnightly service will provide regular slots for exporters and importers in southern India, covering cargoes including rice and grain products, cashews, aquatic products, cotton, yarn, chemicals, food, beverages, coir products and garments.

The DBGT terminal handling this maiden call has a 335.5-meter-long berth, a design draft of 14.2 meters, and an annual container handling capacity of 600,000 TEU. Data from VOC Port show that from April to October 2026, the port handled a cumulative container throughput of 516,000 TEU, up 2.56% from 503,000 TEU in the same period last year.

The extension of the service to Tuticorin is the CVI service's new southern India port of call after Chennai. In October 2026, the service began operations with the first call of "HAIAN BETA" at Chennai, and subsequently added Tuticorin to its rotation. The additional call enables cargo from southern India to connect to ports in Vietnam, China and Malaysia through the same liner network.