The New Fleet of Super Cargo Ships are Preparing for Launch

A new fleet of super ships is being launched over the coming year that will have a huge impact on the handling of container cargo. The E Class container transports1 which have been commissioned by Maersk are immense carriers that are designed to ship at least 16,000 containers at a time. These cutting edge vessels have been designed to be the most cost effective, eco-friendly container ships ever built and they are expected to open up new opportunities across the world as they add significantly to the freight capacity of the world’s container fleets. Currently only a handful of ports can handle the huge craft and so they are restricted to the Asia-Europe routes. They only just squeeze through the Suez Canal so they are probably the largest ships that will be suitable for this job. This does mean, however, that they will reduce transport costs for Asian goods in the West. Because these ships are too large for the Panama Canal, even after it is widened, they are going to have less immediate impact on American ports, especially as there are no US ports that have developed the facilities to handle them. Outside the US, there are more port facilities that are gearing up for these ships. The London intermodal freight park currently under construction, plus restructuring in several European ports will make these essential hubs in the international freight network2. There are plans for development of port facilities in the Americas for these new behemoths but the construction is still in the planning stages. In the meantime the European ports will benefit by their ability to process this new wave of freight and there are hopes that this will lead to an economic revival in the European Union. The new E Class ships will be put into service from the middle of 2013 with five due to be launched after June. These will be followed by four more in 2014, after which their impact on global container transport is expected to be felt. In order not to oversupply the market the owners of this new fleet, Maersk Lines, will take several other ships out of service. This will reduce the handling costs considerably as well as having a positive impact on the overall influence that freight transport has on the environment. This is one of the stated objectives of Maersk in shifting to this efficient new transport model. References: 1. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/9990079/Giants-of-the-canal-the-container-ships-plying-Suez.html 2. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/international-business/the-worlds-biggest-container-ships-prepare-for-delivery/article11281246/?cmpid=rss1