The port’s Hutchison-operated container terminal handled a total volume of 27,961 teu on the megamax vessel MSC AMELIA, which sailed from the port on 8 March.
The mega call was performed on the 2M Far East - Europe service ‘Griffin / AE55’, which is jointly operated by MSC and Maersk and which deploys a mix of M-NPX, MGX-23 and MGX-23 tonnage.
With her nominal intake of 23,782 teu, the MSC AMELIA and her sister MSC MICHELLE are the largest vessels in this service.
Felixtowe’s 27,961 teu call could very well have been one of the largest volumes in liner shipping history. This however cannot be said with certainty since some ports and shipping lines advertise unusually large call sizes for promotional reasons, while others prefer to keep silent about actual handling volumes.
In the light of increasing vessel and call sizes, work is underway to further increase Felixstowe’s ability to handle ultra-large container ships: The UK’s Harwich Haven Authority is dredging the main approach channel to increase the depth from 14.50 m to 16.00 m. Work commenced last year and is due to be completed in 2023.
The port is also increasing the depth at its deep-water berths at the Trinity Terminal. Berth 7 was deepened to 16.50 m and Berth 6 will also be dredged to 16.50 m in 2022.
At the same time, the port’s two newest container piers, Berths 8 and 9 at the South Container Terminal, will be increased to 18.00 m.
