September 3 - Swire Shipping New Zealand has commenced operations and assumed the trade management responsibilities of Tasman Orient Line (TOL) and Swire Shipping's Trans-Tasman Service as well as the liner shipping agency activities of Quadrant Pacific A

The shareholding and business of the non-liner shipping activities of the Quadrant Pacific Limited group of companies is unaffected by this change.

Having completed the management and staff appointments for 80 positions almost exclusively from within the three organisations, Swire Shipping New Zealand will be headquartered in Auckland and maintain offices in all key ports of call, namely Tauranga, Napier, Wellington, Nelson, Christchurch and Timaru.

General manager Randy Selvaratnam says: "Tasman Orient Line and Swire Shipping through their own established presence and through their agency representation by Quadrant Pacific Agencies have built strong foundations in New Zealand and throughout the Asia-Pacific region over many years. We are maintaining our network of offices around the country to ensure we continue to respond to the local requirements of our customers effectively."