Second largest shipping line MSC is scheduled to begin calling ships at the Port of Gothenburg, with the nearly-christened MSC Maya arriving first.
Magnus Kårestedt, CEO of the Port of Gothenburg, said: “This means a great deal for the competitiveness of Swedish industry as it is these vessels that offer direct services to the Far East and other parts of the world.”
It was two years ago that Maersk's Triple E class ships arrived at the Port of Gothenburg, attracting considerable attention in the process.
MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company has topped the world list with its new Oscar class. They all have a load capacity of 19,224 TEU.
Lars Rexius, Managing Director of MSC Sweden, said: “MSC Maya and MSC Zoe and their sister ships exemplifies MSC’s global hunger to grow our business. And we are very pleased with the calling of MSC Maya and MSC Zoe to Gothenburg port, as they will allow us to increase capacity and offer even more competitive transport between Sweden and Asia.”
Henrik Kristensen, Managing Director at APM Terminals Gothenburg, said: “This call will be the largest one since we took over the container terminal almost four years ago. Since the start, we have invested on several improvements, for example new cranes and extended railtracks. Now we have an almost new terminal with an increased productivity and capacity, which of course feels very good.”
The most common cargo ships in the seas around Scandinavia carry around 1,000 containers. MSC Maya is thus equivalent to 19 such vessels.
Lars Rexius said: “MSC Maya and MSC Zoe symbolise the renewal that is taking place within our organisation. Not only do we have the youngest containership fleet in the world today. By incorporating state of the art technologies, such as the electronically controlled modern classic diesel engines, anti-fouling paint and auto pilot systems, MSC Maya and her sisters achieve a remarkable level of efficiency and offer a healthier supply chain.”
The Port of Gothenburg is due to write a Technical Paper in PTI’s next journal – the Mega-Terminals Edition.
Fact File: The Port of Gothenburg is the largest port in the Nordic region. 30% of Swedish foreign trade passes through the Port of Gothenburg as well as 60% of all container traffic. The Port of Gothenburg is the only port in Sweden with the capacity to receive the world's largest container vessels and has the broadest range of shipping routes within and outside Europe.
