Hapag-Lloyd marks 20 years in South Africa, targets 1.7 million TEU across Africa
The acquisition of Deutsche Afrika-Linien’s container liner business in 2022 strengthened connections between South Africa, Europe and the Indian Ocean.
SOUTH AFRICA – Hapag-Lloyd is marking 20 years of operations in South Africa, with African transport volumes surpassing 1 million TEU for the first time in 2026, the company said.
First, citrus anchors this relationship. In 2025, South Africa exported 2.9 million tonnes, making it the world’s largest citrus exporter. Hapag-Lloyd’s Citrus Connect service provides dedicated reefer connections from Durban and Port Elizabeth to Europe and North America.
The carrier currently serves 27 African countries and aims to increase annual transport volume on the continent to 1.7 million TEU by 2030.
Acquisitions and regional expansion
Since opening its first dedicated office in South Africa in 2006, Hapag-Lloyd has expanded its local business to 52 employees supporting customers across multiple industries.
The acquisition of Deutsche Afrika-Linien’s container liner business in 2022 strengthened connections between South Africa, Europe and the Indian Ocean.
Rogelio Busto, Managing Director South and East Africa at Hapag-Lloyd, said: “Over the past 20 years, we have built strong relationships with our customers and partners in South Africa. Their trust, together with the commitment and expertise of our local teams, has been essential to our development.”
Terminal partnerships and African strategy
Meanwhile, the 2021 acquisition of NileDutch strengthened Hapag-Lloyd’s position in West Africa. In 2024, the company established a dedicated Sub-Region Africa to accelerate business development across the continent.
In September 2026, it expanded its cooperation with DP World to secure long-term terminal capacity in Dakar, Luanda and Dar es Salaam, and to support infrastructure development in Banana and Maputo.
Jesper Kanstrup, Managing Director Sub-Region Africa at Hapag-Lloyd, said: “Africa is one of our key growth markets, with significant long-term potential. Our priority is to expand our network and capacity in line with customer demand, while maintaining a strong focus on quality and reliability.”
The 1.7 million TEU target represents a 70% increase over current volumes within four years. Achieving it depends on whether the carrier can convert terminal capacity secured through DP World partnerships into service frequency across West, East and Southern African ports, and whether cargo volumes grow at rates sufficient to fill additional vessel space.
South Africa’s role as a cornerstone market is commercially significant. For instance, the country’s container traffic provides baseline volumes that support service deployment into lower-volume African markets, where standalone services would not be viable.
Finally, to mark the anniversary, Hapag-Lloyd is organizing events for customers, partners and employees in Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg.
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