Analysts have asked if Maersk's plans to shift its transhipment hub from Singapore to Pelepas could lead it to be simply a Maersk Sealand hub.

"I don't think so," Maersk Sealand Asia CEO Flemming Ipsen said.

"Obviously we would not have invested in the port if it was only us it wouldn't be good business in terms of future expansion.

"We have experience running terminals around the world with other lines as clients and we don’t have a problem," he added.

Saloman Smith Barney analyst Charles de Trenck had asked: "As volumes start to pick up at PTP, how efficient will it be in handling extra volumes and will other customers continue to enjoy efficient service?"

PTP CEO Mohd Sidik Shaik is as confident as his newly acquired top customer Maersk that the port will attract other lines.

"PTP is a common-user terminal and this does not change with the Maersk equity stake.

"We are negotiating deals with several lines now and we hope to conclude by the end of this year," he said.

A representative of a major container shipping line in Singapore who declined to be named said that while his line was committed to Singapore, "competition is a good thing, the more terminals the better from a shipping line's point of view".

On whether he foresees other shipping lines moving to PTP, he said it depended on what benefits the port could offer over Singapore.

The percentage of Maersk Sealand business remaining in Singapore is estimated to be 10-15 per cent of its present throughput at Port of Singapore Authority (PSA), or between 160,000 and 285,000 TEU.

This includes Maersk's high frequency feeder service carrying Singapore-destined cargo from PTP to Singapore and the Australia / New Zealand liner services remaining with PSA. Maersk is also keeping its regional headquarters in Singapore.

According to one feeder operator, who declined to be named: "No third party feeder operator would be willing to run the shuttle service unless Maersk was to sweeten the pot." The reason being that any feeder service calling at the new Malaysian port risks losing its fee rebates from PSA.

Some feeder operators say they are not surprised by Maersk' move as they know the Danish line to be "very aggressive in managing its costs". They also point to periodic friction between PSA and various shipping lines over the issue of cost and dedicated terminal facilities.

"PSA still has the upper hand because they know how to run a port efficiently, but it comes at a cost. They will have to watch PTP very closely," said one feeder operator.

When asked whether industry players' assessments of PSA as inflexible was fair, Ipsen said: "I absolutely abstain from this mud throwing. PSA reacted fairly and in a business-like way to this development.

"Of course over the years we told them what we were after and they certainly were not able to offer that. With PTP we had the opportunity for ownership and on top of that an opportunity to save some money."