The Madrid Maersk, the largest container carrier ever to call at the port of Antwerp, moored in the Deurganck dock on 9 June.
This record-breaking ship with a capacity of 20,568 TEU unloaded 3,000 containers and loaded another 4,000 in the port of Antwerp in just 48 hours, thus setting a new milestone in the history of the port. Check out the video clip here to experience the atmosphere of the event and how we all welcomed this giant of the seas.
The Madrid Maersk is the first in a series of 11 new ships in the second generation of Triple E vessels being built for the Danish shipping company Maersk Line. Triple E stands for Efficiency, Economy of scale and Environmentally improved, with the second generation scoring even better than the first in all three aspects.
Thanks to the advanced design these ships can carry up to 2,000 more containers despite having the same dimensions. This raises the efficiency by 7% and reduces the environmental footprint per container. In addition the ships have an onboard system for recycling of waste water.
"We are very proud to welcome the Madrid Maersk in Antwerp," says Andreas Coppens, Managing Director of Maersk Line Belgium.
Andreas added: "Maersk Line has a long historical background in this port, where its activity has experienced rapid growth in the past few years. The arrival of the Madrid Maersk is also a symbol of the good collaboration with the port of Antwerp, together with the many other players in the port community and not least also our Belgian and international customers."
Numerous prominent people were on hand to welcome the call by the leviathan carrier. In addition as many interested people as possible were given the chance to admire this magnificent vessel from close up. Antwerp Port Authority organised boat trips to the Deurganck dock during the weekend, and all available places were booked almost immediately.