5th eco 24K+TEU giant joins OOCL’s fleet

Hong Kong-based container shipping company Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL) has welcomed another new mega containership into its fleet, OOCL Zeebrugge, the fifth eco-friendly 24,188 TEU vessel in a series of twelve.

The vessel was named at a ceremony held at the Nantong COSCO KHI Ship Engineering Co., Ltd. (NACKS) shipyard.

“The company’s interim results reflect the robustness of OOCL’s business operations through changing markets. Looking ahead, this series of new mega vessels will continue to bring economies of scale to us, and to optimize OOCL’s fleet structure, enabling us to better navigate uncertainties in the future,” Kenny YE, Chief Operating Officer of OOCL, said.

“In addition, the latest technological and green features of these vessels demonstrate our determination to be at the forefront of our industry, driving development forward with the most comprehensive, advanced technology and in the most sustainable way.”

The OOCL Zeebrugge will serve the Asia-Europe LL3 loop line together with her sister vessels OOCL Felixstowe, OOCL Spain​ was the first vessel from the batch, followed by OOCL Piraeus and OOCL Turkiye earlier in the year.​ Her port rotation is:

Shanghai / Xiamen / Nansha / Hong Kong / Yantian / Cai Mep / Singapore / Piraeus / Hamburg / Rotterdam / Zeebrugge / Valencia / Piraeus / Abu Dhabi / Port Kelang / Shanghai 

The ships are capable of carrying up to 24,188 twenty-foot container boxes, and having a total length of 399.99 meters and a width of 61.3 meters.  This scale places them among the largest container ships in the world (as measured by carrying capacity). 

Vessels in this series incorporate the latest technology, and are equipped with advanced smart systems and upgraded green design, such as low resistance lines design and an energy-saving bulbous bow.

OOCL expects the new series of green and smart mega vessels to provide it with economies of scale, energy efficiency, and long-term navigational safety.

OOCL ordered five 23,000 TEU boxships at COSCO shipbuilding yards in China back in 2020, with three ultra-large container vessels (ULCVs) assigned for construction at NACKS yard and the remaining two at Dalian COSCO KHI Ship Engineering (DACKS).  The ship quintet is planned for delivery in 2023.

The order was followed by another contract later that year with OOCL ordering another seven units.