The move to open an office in Panama City comes as the shortsea shipping company continues expand in Latin American region having launched its first service in March 2023. 

The new Panama team will support the Unifeeder businesses across the region in coordination with global its headquarters in Aarhus, Denmark. Unifeeder will handle more than 200,000 teu and complete 800 port calls in the region in 2024 and has plans to develop its Latin American operations further in the coming years. 

“Opening offices in key markets including Panama and introducing new direct feeder services means we can not only offer enhanced logistics options to our customers, but also create a positive impact on the local economy,” commented Jesper Kristensen, Group CEO at Unifeeder Group and Group COO Marine Services at DP World.

In February 2023 the company launched  a new Colombia-Panama service transporting containerised cargo between the North Colombian ports of Turbo, Santa Marta, Cartagena, Barranquilla and Manzanillo in Panama.

In April 2024 Unifeeder added new direct feeder services connecting ports in Venezuela with the ABC islands has commenced. The first service connects Manzanillo in Panama with Oranjestad in Aruba and Willemstad in Curaçao. A second service is connecting Manzanillo and Cartagena in Colombia with three ports in Venezuela: Maracaibo, Guanta and Guaranao.

 “Latin America is home to major emerging markets and abundant natural resources, particularly agricultural products. It is therefore an important logistics and supply chain hub for the regional and global economy. As DP World continues to expand in the region, the opening of our first office in Panama and the introduction of new feeder coverage represent a key step forward in our strategy to become the logistics partner of choice in the region,” added Morten Johansen, EVP Americas, DP World.