MSC's new standalone Phoenix service on the Asia - Europe trade has been plagued by frequent setbacks with her commencement date and continues to leave much to the imagination in regards to its upcoming vessel lineup.
There have been three major delays since March 14, 2025 - including the latest push on proforma start dates confirmed on March 31 by eeSea analysts. The latest delay has stretched the starting lineup back to the first week of May with the maiden voyage of the MSC CANCUN forecasted to depart Busan on May 04. In just the past four days alone we witnessed long-term schedules drop the first two vessels, the MSC SHANELLE V and MSC MARIA CLARA which are both in shipyard, in favor of the MSC CANCUN and another TBN.
The service has been adapted over from the former 2M - Adriatic MED loop with a slightly reduced roundtrip of 112 to 105 days and average vessel sizes currently dipping from 15K down to 6.8K TEU. However, with just 3 out of 15 total slots currently assigned, it may be that MSC plans to inject significantly more capacity in these mercurial schedules. Other changes to the successor's proforma strcuture include calls to Mersin, Iskendurun, and Piraeus.
For more play-by-play insights on vessel schedules and forecasts, or an overview of trade lane evolution on the heels of the latest alliance overhauls, please check out our other eeSea publications or reach out to our team at contact@eesea.com