ONE taps Seanautics as Syria agent in Levant network push

Ocean Network Express (ONE) has appointed Seanautics Maritime Services LLC as its official shipping agent in Syria, with operations scheduled to begin in January 2027. The appointment gives the carrier a dedicated local representative in Damascus and Latakia and extends a commercial relationship with Seanautics that already runs through neighbouring Lebanon. No new direct services or port calls accompany the deal — this is a commercial-agency move, not a capacity move.

The timing matters for shippers watching the Levant. Seanautics has been active in the region for 25 years, and its local teams will handle shipping enquiries and transport and logistics support, giving ONE's customers a local access point to the carrier's international network from the start of next year. In practical terms, Syrian importers and exporters gain a named counterparty in their own cities rather than routing commercial questions through regional offices abroad.

Who said what at the signing?

Tomohiro Hosaka, Managing Director of ONE Europe & Africa, framed the expansion as a response to demand. He said the appointment would help the carrier meet growing demand for shipping and logistics services in Syria, and he highlighted Seanautics' local experience and knowledge of the market. That pairing — demand growth plus local knowledge — is the standard logic carriers apply when entering thin or re-emerging markets without committing tonnage.

Raed G. Baconi, Deputy CEO of Seanautics Maritime Services LLC, welcomed the partnership. He said the company's teams in Damascus and Latakia would support customers and help connect Syrian businesses with international markets. For the agent, the mandate represents an expansion of its ONE relationship from one Levant market to two.

What does the appointment actually change?

The change is commercial infrastructure, not network design. ONE has not announced any new direct shipping services or port calls as part of the appointment, which means cargo to and from Syria will continue to move through the carrier's existing network arrangements rather than via dedicated sailings. The new agency extends ONE's commercial reach across the Levant, building on the established cooperation with Seanautics in Lebanon.

For forwarders and shippers, the immediate consequences are concrete:

• A local booking and enquiry channel in Damascus and Latakia from January 2027, backed by a 25-year regional operator.
• Local support for transport and logistics needs under ONE's flag, rather than through third-party arrangements.
• No change to sailing schedules, port rotations or capacity — the appointment covers agency representation only.

A foothold, not yet a commitment

The structure of the deal signals how carriers re-enter markets incrementally. An agency appointment costs a fraction of a new service deployment, carries no vessel-exposure risk, and lets the carrier test demand through a partner with deep local roots. If Syrian volumes materialise through the Seanautics channel, the logical next steps — feeder connections or direct calls — would follow; none are on the table today.

The Lebanon precedent offers the template. ONE and Seanautics built their cooperation there first, and the Syrian mandate extends that arrangement to a second market, extending the carrier's commercial network across the Levant as a whole.

Operations begin in January 2027. Until ONE signals anything beyond agency representation, shippers should read this as a service-quality and market-access play — a local front door for Syrian cargo into ONE's global network — with any capacity decisions still to come as the carrier watches how demand develops through its newest Levant office.