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Yet another mega size container ship will call
at Port Klang reaffirming the position of the
port as leading transshipment hub.
Hapag-Lloyd’s “Hanover Express” with 8,750 teus
carrying capacity will make her maiden voyage on
26 November in Port Klang.
The German carrier with close to 100,000
displacement tones is currently sailing direct
from Rotterdam to Northport at Port Klang.
Michael Behrendt, CEO of Hapag-Lloyd AG said
Hapag-Lloyds would continue its expansion plan
as global container transport volume is
estimated to increase from about 100 million
standard containers to more than 155 million
containers by 2012. Container transport remains
a growth market.
“And there are no signs whatsoever that this
will change. To claim an appropriate share of
this growth, we will be taking delivery of ten
more new buildings up to 2010,” said Michael
Behrendt in the naming ceremony of Hanover
Express.
Michael said the next two units of the series
would be integrated into the fleet in the first
four months of 2008.
They will be sister ships of the Hanover Express
and identical to this in size and capacity.
Hanover Express has a length of 335 metres, beam
of 43 metres and height from the keel to the top
of the mast of 60 metres. These vessels are also
being built at Hyundai Heavy Industries in
Korea.
Hapag-Lloyd transported approximately 2.7million
teus in the first half of 2007, nine per cent
more than in the first half of 2006.
The world economy continues to have great growth
potential and ship capacities have been fully
needed in 2007 as they were in 2006 despite all
the warnings about overcapacities stressed
Michael.
He said China is on the best way to becoming the
main exporter and thus ousting Germany from its
leading position.
In view of that the important of the China
sector, Hanover Express is being deployed
between Europe and Far East sector which links
almost all major ports in China namely Shekou,
Hong Kong, Ningbo, Shanghai and Xiamen.
The service under the Grand Alliance (comprising
MISC Berhad, NYK and OOCL and Hapag-Lloyd ) is
calling at Hamburg and Rotterdam Port in Europe
and in Asia Singapore, Port Klang in Asia and
major ports in China. The Hanover Express with
sailing speed of 25 knots able to complete a
round voyage in 63 days.
Hapag-Lloyd belongs to the top five container
transport carriers. It is represented with about
340 sales offices in over 100 countries.
Its 77 liner services link ports on all five
continents. With the delivery of the Hanover
Express, the fleet comprises 143 containerships
with a total capacity of 500,000 teus. |
