Milestone in the port of Vigo: the largest container ship in the world docks
“MSC Türkiye” is 400 meters long by 65 meters wide and has only been sailing for a few months. Docked at the terminal of Vigo on a technical stopover for repairs
It is the largest container ship in the world with a length that extends up to 400 meters and a beam of 65 meters. And never had a hull of such dimensions moored in a Vigo dock or in any other in the Bay.
This is the MSC Türkiye, a true leviathan of the seas that docked in Vigo at dawn on a technical stopover for repairs, as confirmed by Termavi terminal sources, from Davila Group, in a docking that was initially going to last only a few hours.
The gigantic ship of 236,080 gross tonnage, was just launched just two months ago by the shipowner MSC, world leader in container traffic, which has had two identical ships since last year, the MSC Irina and MSC Tessa and which together with the MSC Türkiye occupy the throne as the largest in the world for the transport of goods on the high seas.
The trio has capacities that exceed 24,000 TEU containers (a cargo unit known as this in maritime terminology, 20 feet long, equivalent to 6.1 meters), reaching the 24,354 units that the MSC Türkiye can load. The ship was thus named in a nod from the MSC shipping company to Turkey, which next week will celebrate its centenary as an independent republic.
The ultra-long container ship (Ultra Large Container Vessel) arrived in Vigo making a stop on its route within the regular line that connects the large European terminals of Rotterdam, Antwerp and Felixstowe with ports in the Far East. With its stopover, the MSC Türkiye snatches the record for the largest container ship arriving in Vigo from the German Cap San Maleas, 333 meters long and 9,500 TEU in capacity, which visited us in January 2020.
Vigo- Guixar terminal, the dock of records
In terms of docks, Guixar container terminal is by far the most likely to receive the largest ships currently being built. Years ago, Maersk contracted its already famous Triple E series, a saga of hulls with lengths above 400 meters, and since giants like Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller or Mathilde Maersk began sailing, they soon imitated the Danish the rest of the main shipping companies in the world, starting with its direct rival, the Swiss MSC.
Not even the latest and most enormous cruise ships come close to container ships in size. The 'Icon of the Seas', from Royal Caribbean, is enough as a reference, which will rise to the podium of the largest in the world in January thanks to its 365 meters long and 250,800 tons.
Nor could Bouzas dock car terminal register a similar length record. Currently, Ro-Ro ships of enormous dimensions, close to 200 linear meters, are already moored here, much smaller than current container ships. In fact, the 'car carrier' segment has not yet reached the 300-meter-Long bar.
News and image source: Faro de Vigo