(With photo album/videos) The world’s largest container ship, oil tanker and iro ore vessel have all visited the port of Rotterdam on the same day. The Port of Rotterdam Authority invited SWZ Maritime editor Hugo Dill to join the MV Ostara to welcome all three ships to Rotterdam.
The vessels all visited the port of Rotterdam on Friday 16 August.
Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller
All eyes were on the Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller, Maersk first Triple E-class. With a capacity of 18,000 teu (twenty-foot containers), a length of 399 metres and a width of 59 metres, this vessel is by far the largest container ship in the world. It is also the first of a series of twenty.
Ti Europe
At the same time, the Ti Europe was moored at Dolphins 80 in the Calandkanaal. With a length of 380 metres and width of 69 metres, this white tanker is the largest oil tanker in the world still in operation (dwt 420,000 tonnes).
Vale Rio de Janeiro
The Vale Rio de Janeiro moored at EMO in the Mississippihaven. This ship, the largest iron ore vessel in the world, measures 362 metres by 65 metres. Two years ago, the ship succeeded the Berge Stahl as the biggest iron ore carrier.
The Berge Stahl was also in the port on Friday, at EECV. This vessel measures “only” 343 metres by 63.5 metres.
Shipping Increases in Scale
The Berge Stahl has been sailing between Brazil and Rotterdam since 1986. For years, the ship was by far the largest vessel to call at Rotterdam, apart from a few massive oil tankers. The arrival of the new generation of iron ore vessels and container ships confirms the huge increase in scale that has taken place in shipping in recent years.
This is also reflected in the port statistics. In 2006, the first container ship with a capacity of more than 10,000 teu arrived; in 2011, 362 of such container ships called at the port. Last year, this number had risen to 487. Despite the steady increase in throughput to over 440 million tonnes, the number of ships arriving in Rotterdam has fallen in recent years from 35,000 to 32,000.
Depth
The port of Rotterdam can receive the giants due to its depth of 23 metres and the Eurogeul, a channel in the North Sea stretching for 57 kilometres and with a guaranteed depth of 25 metres. This depth is mainly needed for iron ore vessels and oil tankers.
When fully loaded, the Vale Rio has a draught of 23 metres and the Ti Europe a massive 24.5 metres. The Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller “only” has a maximum draught of 16 metres. The unique thing about the port of Rotterdam is that this ship can access the Europahaven 24 hours a day, in normal circumstances.
Photo Album and Videos
SWZ Maritime editor Hugo Dill was invited by the Port of Rotterdam Authority to visit these giants with MV Ostara. Below a photo album with his pictures (directly under the videos).
**Please click the little squares at the bottom right of the album (the pop-out link) to watch the pictures in their proper dimensions.**
Below also two videos, the first with just the Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller arriving in Rotterdam (shot from the Fast Ferry) and the second one featuring all three ships, a video by Fred Vloo.
