Crowley Liner Services to Increase Service Frequency, Add 21 Annual Sailings to Panama and Costa Rica

2000-07-12

(JACKSONVILLE; July 12, 2000) Beginning August 2 Crowley Liner Services will enhance its service between Port Everglades, Florida; Manzanillo, Panama, and Puerto Limn, Costa Rica, moving from a weekly, fixed-day schedule to sailings every five days.

The resulting improvement will give customers in the trade 73 opportunities a year to ship with Crowley instead of the present 52. And the change in vessel deployment will enhance frequency and capacity by 40 percent on an annualized basis.

Our customers have expressed concerns about capacity and frequency of service in light of the recently passed Caribbean Basin Initiative – NAFTA Parity bill, which is expected to generate increased cargo volumes when it goes into effect October 1, said Rinus Schepen, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Crowley Liner Services – Latin America. This service enhancement addresses those needs and continues to ensure the fastest transit times for our apparel customers and others shipping time-sensitive cargoes.

Crowleys Central America Southern Zone service links Port Everglades with Manzanillo and Puerto Limn. Managua, Nicaragua is served overland via Puerto Limn.

The company utilizes Ro/Ro vessels in the service, allowing customers to book Crowleys full complement of equipment, including garment-on-hanger containers and 45-foot (102-inch-wide) high-cube trailers.

Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, Crowley Liner Services provides cargo common carrier services between Canada, the United States and Puerto Rico, the Caribbean, Central America, Mexico, Jamaica, the Dominican Republic and the north coasts of Colombia and Venezuela. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Oakland-based Crowley Maritime Corp., founded in 1892. Additional information about Crowley Maritime Corp. and its subsidiaries, Crowley Liner Services, Crowley Marine Services, Crowley Logistics and Crowley Petroleum Transport may be found on the Internet at www.crowley.com.