Polaris Service - Improved connectivity between Australia and New Zealand

Following the prolonged disruption at Australian ports due to the ongoing industrial action, we are pleased to announce an upgrade to the Polaris service. This change will improve frequency between Australia and Port of Auckland, while strengthening the resilience of our overall Oceania network and your supply chain.

Upgrade of the Polaris service to a weekly Auckland call and Sydney to replace Melbourne

Effective from December 13th 2023, the Polaris Service rotation will be upgraded to call Auckland on a weekly basis. In addition, the current port call at Melbourne will be replaced with a weekly call at Sydney, Patrick Terminal. With this change, we are pleased to offer our customers a weekly connection between Sydney and Port of Auckland, as well as a direct connection between Sydney and Nelson, Timaru and Port Chalmers. The service will continue to operate on a weekly frequency.

Polaris current rotation: Melbourne > Auckland* > Nelson > Timaru > Port Chalmers > Melbourne
*fortnightly

0Polaris new rotation: Sydney > Auckland > Nelson > Timaru > Port Chalmers > Sydney

The New Rotation of the Polaris service is effective from 13th December 2023

The last sailing of the current rotation will the AS SABINE with last call in Melbourne on the 6th of December. The New Rotation of the Polaris service is effective from 13th December 2023 with the first port of call in Sydney Patrick Terminal.

Maersk maintains a strong Ocean Product between Melbourne and New Zealand

We will continue to connect Melbourne with New Zealand on our OC1 and PANZ services offering you two weekly connections from Melbourne to Auckland, Metroport. Melbourne to Port Chalmers remain a weekly connection on the OC1 service. Melbourne to Nelson and Timaru will connect to the new Polaris service in Sydney.

We continue to offer our customers flexibility of choice with a weekly departure from both Port of Auckland and Auckland Metroport to Melbourne on the Maersk PANZ and OC1 service.

Port Chalmers to Melbourne will connect in Tauranga to the OC1 service and remain a weekly connection. Timaru and Nelson to Melbourne will continue to load on the Polaris service with a transshipment in Sydney.

Do you have additional questions on how this service change impacts your supply chain?

If you have further questions, we encourage you to visit Maersk.com or liaise with your local Maersk customer service representative.

We want to thank you for your continuous support as we remain committed to adjust our network to minimize impact of the current disruption to your supply chain. We look forward to continuously serving your global transportation needs.