Today, Hapag-Lloyd (www.Hapag-Lloyd.com) opened its new office in Lagos, Nigeria. As the largest economy and one of the most populous countries in Africa, Nigeria plays a crucial role in the container liner’s growth strategy on the continent. Lagos is one of the most important port cities in Africa.

“We are happy to welcome the new team and our country manager Florian Nittscher to the Hapag-Lloyd family!” says Vishal Bundhun, Managing Director Area West Africa at Hapag-Lloyd. “Via the Middle East India Africa Express (MIAX) and the Mediterranean West Africa Express (MWX), Nigeria is well-connected to the global Hapag-Lloyd network. With our new office, we move even closer to our customers in the region.”

Nigeria is the economic powerhouse of West Africa. With large oil reserves and a growing middle class, the country imports everything from industry machinery to electronic appliances. Nigeria’s main exports are cocoa beans, cashews, and other agricultural products.

“Hapag-Lloyd has been expanding its business steadily in West Africa over the past years”, explains Dheeraj Bhatia, Senior Managing Director Region Middle East at Hapag-Lloyd. “Our new office in Lagos will create further growth for us and will help us to even better connect Nigeria to the world.”

In Lagos, Hapag-Lloyd calls at the ports Apapa and Tin Can Island. In order to offer its African customers consistently high service all over the continent, Hapag-Lloyd opened a dedicated Quality Service Center in Mauritius at the beginning of the year.