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OOCL takes delivery of sixth and final 21,413TEU boxship, the OOCL Indonesia

HONG Kong's Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL) has taken delivery of its sixth and last 21,413 TEU boxship in a series of six 'G Class' containerships from Samsung Heavy Industry (SHI) shipyard.

The vessel will begin her maiden voyage this month and will join her five sister vessels on its LL1 service, linking major markets in Asia and Northern Europe, the container line said.

The port rotation for the 77-day loop is Shanghai, Ningbo, Xiamen, Yantian, Singapore, via Suez Canal, Felixstowe, Rotterdam, Gdansk, Wilhelmshaven, Felixstowe, vai Suez Canal, Singapore, Yantian and back to Shanghai.

The six vessels built by SHI were completed within one year, OOCL noted.

"The flexibility provided in our newbuilding programme is one of the crucial elements to how we can better manage our fleet and operations in such a dynamic and challenging industry," OOCL chief executive Andy Tung said.

"Not only was the time factor a challenge, but the actual engineering feat in building the world's largest containerships for the first time within the given period while incorporating the best and latest innovation and technologies is a monumental project not to be underestimated."

Mr Tung also said that the christening "marked a wonderful start to the new year in 2018 as the industry is seeing a much healthier global economic environment not seen in many years since the 2009 financial crisis, and that various governments around the world are continuing to fuel the growth momentum with policy agendas to boost trade and economic cooperation."

The chief executive also spoke about the Hong Kong-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement (FTA), which was signed in November, as an opportunity for trade growth and market expansion.

"Once ratified, the new FTA arrangements will not only open opportunities for trade growth, but also facilitate more effective and efficient trade links through the elimination of import duties and streamlining of regulations that would inevitably help improve supply chain flow over the long run. In our industry, speed is of essence and we are very excited to see these kinds of policy directions pushing forward," Mr Tung added.