Philippine Span Asia Carrier Corporation (PSACC), formerly branded as Sulpicio Lines, Inc. (SLI, ), is a major

shipping line A shipping line or shipping company is a company whose line of business is ownership and operation of ships. Shipping companies provide a method of distinguishing ships by different kinds of cargo: # Bulk cargo is a type of special cargo that i ...

in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. PSACC is one of the largest domestic shipping and container companies in the Philippines in terms of the number of vessels operated and gross tonnage. The company provides inter-island cargo services throughout the major ports and cities in the Philippines.

History

Philippine Span Asia Carrier Corporation (PSACC) was established as Sulpicio Lines by Go Guioc So. Commonly known as Sulpicio Go, Go was a Chinese merchant from

Amoy Xiamen ( , ; ), also known as Amoy (, from Hokkien pronunciation ), is a sub-provincial city in southeastern Fujian, People's Republic of China, beside the Taiwan Strait. It is divided into six districts: Huli, Siming, Jimei, Tong' ...

(now Xiamen) who emigrated to the Philippines in 1919 with his siblings. With his brother he set up a shipping enterprise in

Eastern Visayas Eastern Visayas ( war, Sinirangan Kabisay-an; ceb, Sidlakang Kabisay-an; tl, Silangang Kabisayaan or ''Silangang Visayas'') is an administrative region in the Philippines, designated as Region VIII. It consists of three main islands, Samar, ...

. In 1953, Go served as the managing partner of Carlos A. Gothong Lines, Inc.. Sulpicio Go established his own venture with his sons by founding Sulpicio Lines in September 1973, starting with a fleet of 17 vessels, 1 tugboat and 5 barges. Sulpicio Lines catered to a

niche market A niche market is the subset of the market on which a specific product is focused. The market niche defines the product features aimed at satisfying specific market needs, as well as the price range, production quality and the demographics that i ...

, opening tertiary and developmental passenger routes to isolated communities in Central and Eastern Visayas. Sulpicio Lines grew to be the largest domestic shipping company in the Philippines, with a fleet of 22 passenger and cargo vessels and a market share of 20 percent of domestic sea traffic in the Philippines in 1988. The company experienced multiple marine disasters, including the 1987 sinking of the ''

Doña Paz Don (; ; pt, Dom, links=no ; all from Latin ', roughly 'Lord'), abbreviated as D., is an honorific prefix primarily used in Spain and Hispanic America, and with different connotations also in Italy, Portugal and its former colonies, and Croat ...

'', the sinking of the '' Doña Marilyn'' in 1988, the sinking of the '' Princess of the Orient'' in 1998, and the 2008 sinking of the '' Princess of The Stars'' during the occurrence of '' Typhoon Fengshen'' (

PAGASA Pagasa may refer to: * ''Pagasa'' (genus), an insect genus in the family Nabidae * PAGASA, an acronym for the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration *"May Pagasa", a pen-name of José Rizal José Prot ...

name: Frank). In 2009, the PSACC adopted its current name discontinuing the use of "Sulpicio Lines to refer to the company. In January 2015, almost 7 years after the sinking of

MV Princess of the Stars MV ''Princess of the Stars'' (or just ''Princess of the Stars'') was a passenger ferry owned by Filipino shipping company Sulpicio Lines, that capsized and sank on June 21, 2008, off the coast of San Fernando, Romblon, at the height of Typhoo ...

, the

Maritime Industry Authority The Maritime Industry Authority ( fil, Pangasiwaan sa Industriyang Maritima), known by the acronym MARINA (), is an agency of the Philippine government under the Department of Transportation responsible for integrating the development, promoti ...

decided to revoke the company's certificate of public convenience (CPC), which meant that the company could no longer legally transport passengers.

Ports of Call

Philippine Span Asia Carrier's main ports of call are the cities of

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populated ...

and

Cebu Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 16 ...

. Other ports of call are the cities of

Butuan Butuan (pronounced ), officially the City of Butuan ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Butuan; Butuanon: ''Dakbayan hong Butuan''; fil, Lungsod ng Butuan), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the region of Caraga, Philippines. It is the ''de facto'' c ...

Cagayan de Oro Cagayan ( ), officially the Province of Cagayan ( ilo, Probinsia ti Cagayan; ibg, Provinsiya na Cagayan; itv, Provinsiya ya Cagayan; fil, Lalawigan ng Cagayan), is a province in the Philippines located in the Cagayan Valley region, covering ...

Cotabato Cotabato or North Cotabato ( hil, Aminhan Cotabato; ceb, Amihanang Cotabato; Maguindanaon: ''Pangutaran Kutawatu'', Jawi: ڤڠوترن كوتاواتو; fil, Hilagang Cotabato), officially the Province of Cotabato, is a landlocked province in ...

, Davao,

Dipolog Dipolog, officially the City of Dipolog ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Dipolog; Subanen: ''Gembagel G'benwa Dipuleg/Bagbenwa Dipuleg''; Chavacano: ''Ciudad de Dipolog''; fil, Lungsod ng Dipolog), is a 3rd class component city and capital of the province ...

Dumaguete Dumaguete, officially the City of Dumaguete ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Dumaguete; fil, Lungsod ng Dumaguete), is a 3rd income class component city and the capital of the province of Negros Oriental, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a p ...

General Santos General Santos, officially the City of General Santos,; hil, Dakbanwa sang Heneral Santos; Maguindanao: ''Ingud nu Heneral Santos''; Blaan: ''Banwe Dadiangas''; Tboli: ''Benwu Dadiangas''; Filipino: ''Lungsod ng Heneral Santos'' and abbre ...

Iloilo Iloilo (), officially the Province of Iloilo ( hil, Kapuoran sang Iloilo; krj, Kapuoran kang Iloilo; tl, Lalawigan ng Iloilo), is a province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is the City of Iloilo, the ...

, Ozamis, Surigao,

Tagbilaran Tagbilaran, officially the City of Tagbilaran ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Tagbilaran), is a 3rd class component city and capital of the province of Bohol, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 104,976 people. Encompassing a l ...

, and Zamboanga. It also includes the towns of Estancia,

Jagna Jagna, officially the Municipality of Jagna ( ceb, Munisipalidad sa Jagna; tgl, Bayan ng Jagna), is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Bohol, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 35,832 people. Jagna is lo ...

, and

Nasipit Nasipit, officially the Municipality of Nasipit ( ceb, Lungsod sa Nasipit; tgl, Bayan ng Nasipit), is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Agusan del Norte, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 44,822 people. ...

Fleet

PSACC once had passenger RoRo (Roll on - Roll off) vessels. However, because of their disreputable public image after a series of ferry disasters, PSACC had to focus solely on cargo shipping. Span Asia 25

Current

*''Span Asia 1'' *''Span Asia 2'' *''Span Asia 3'' *''Span Asia 5'' *''Span Asia 7'' *''Span Asia 9'' *''Span Asia 10'' *''Span Asia 11'' *''Span Asia 12'' *''Span Asia 19'' *''Span Asia 20'' *''Span Asia 21'' *''Span Asia 22'' *''Span Asia 23'' *'' Span Asia 25'' *''Span Asia 27'' *''Span Asia 29'' *''Span Asia 30'' *''Span Asia 31'' *''Span Asia 32'' *''Span Asia 33''

Former

*''

'' (caught fire after colliding with an oil tanker, resulting in over 4000 lives lost: the deadliest peacetime maritime disaster in history) *'' Doña Marilyn'' (sank October 24, 1988 in typhoon Unsang. 391 dead or missing; 300 survivors) *''Philippine Princess'' (caught fire in 1997, later broken-up, Former Flagship 1984 - 1988) *Cagayan Princess (sold to Roble Shipping Inc. as M/V ''Theresian Stars'') *''Cebu Princess'' (sold to Roble Shipping Inc. as M/V ''Joyful Stars'') *''Dipolog Princess'' (sold to breakers in China) *''Cotabato Princess'' (sold & broken-up in Villono Shipyard) *''Iloilo Princess'' (sunk in Pier 7, sold & broken-up) *''Nasipit Princess'' (sold & broken-up) *''Palawan Princess'' (sold & broken-up) *''Tacloban Princess'' (sold & caught fire, later declared a total loss) *''Filipina Princess'' (sold to breakers in China, Former Flagship 1988 - 1993) *''Princess of The Paradise'' (sold to breakers in China) *''Princess of The Caribbean'' (sold to breakers in China) *''Princess of The Ocean'' (sold to breakers in China) *'' Princess of The Stars'' (capsized & sunk in 2008 near San Fernando, Romblon, with the loss over 800 lives. Was later broken up in Navotas, Former Flagship 2004 - 2008) *'' Princess of the Orient'' (sunk near Batangas during a typhoon in 1998, over 70 died, with almost 80 people missing, Former Flagship 1993 - 1998) *''Princess of The Pacific'' (sold & broken-up) *''Princess of New Unity'' (sold & broken-up sometime in the 2000s) *''Princess of the World'' (caught fire in Zamboanga) *''Princess of The Universe'' (sold to breakers in India, Former Flagship 1998 - 2004) *''Princess of The South'' (sold & broken-up, Former Flagship 2008 - 2014) *''Princess of the Earth'' (Sold to Trans-Asia Shipping as Transasia 10) *''Span Asia 17'' (Former name MV Sulpicio Express Siete. Was involved in a collision with the ferry MV St. Thomas Aquinas on August 16, 2013)

References