Sofrana Lines
Sofrana Lines (legal entity Sofrana Unilines Ltd.) is a niche operator headquartered in Auckland, New Zealand. Founded in 1976, the line has spent 50 years building out its container service network and today operates a fleet of 6 vessels under the SCAC code SOFR. Total operated capacity stands near 3,500 TEU, placing the carrier among the recognised operators on its core trade lanes. The company holds intermodal equipment under 3 registered ISO 6346 owner prefixes, which appear on every box it owns or long-term leases.
Sofrana Lines is most active on the following corridors: Pacific Islands, Polynesia. The line operates on a standalone basis and does not share vessel slots with other ocean carriers under a formal global alliance. Direct customer contact is available via +64 9 309 9495 or the carrier's web portal at sofrana.com.
Sofrana Lines container prefixes
Every intermodal container carries an ISO 6346 owner code — three letters identifying the owner, plus a single category letter (almost always U for freight containers). These four-letter prefixes are the fastest way to identify which carrier controls a given box. Sofrana Lines has the following registered prefixes recorded in the BIC database. If a container in your possession begins with any of these codes, the box is owned by or leased on long term to Sofrana Lines.
SOFUSOFRSOFL
To track a container under one of these prefixes, contact the carrier directly using the bill-of-lading number or container number. Most ocean carriers expose a public tracking endpoint on their website that accepts either format. Sofrana Lines publishes its tracking page under the main sofrana.com domain.
Sofrana Lines corridor coverage
Sofrana Lines concentrates its services on Pacific Islands, Polynesia. Customers on these lanes typically see weekly or twice-weekly sailings depending on season and trade balance. For a current sailing schedule, contact the carrier directly or consult its weekly schedule publication.
How to track a Sofrana Lines container
Tracking a Sofrana Lines container starts with confirming the prefix. Look at the container's left-hand corner casting plate or the painted code on the door — the four-letter ISO 6346 owner code (e.g. SOFU) is followed by six numeric digits and a single check digit. If the prefix matches one in the list above, the box is on a Sofrana Lines bill of lading. Visit sofrana.com, navigate to the carrier's tracking or "track and trace" portal, and paste the full container number. The portal will return current vessel position, the next scheduled port call, the estimated time of arrival (ETA) and the most recent equipment events such as gate-in, loaded, discharged and gate-out.
If the carrier portal does not return a result, the most likely causes are: the container has not yet been gate-in at the origin terminal, the bill of lading number is in a different format (check whether the system expects an MBL versus an HBL), or the box is moving on a partner alliance vessel rather than a Sofrana Lines hull. In the last case, the prefix still resolves to Sofrana Lines as equipment owner but the schedule data lives with the operating carrier. Sofrana Lines's customer service can normally cross-reference the booking and route you to the correct alliance partner. Reach the carrier on +64 9 309 9495 during European business hours.
Related ocean carriers
Operators most often compared with Sofrana Lines on overlapping trade lanes:
- Neptune Pacific Direct Line — Auckland, New Zealand, founded 1976. SCAC NPDL.
- Pacific Direct Line — Auckland, New Zealand, founded 1995. SCAC PDLI.