The world’s largest container vessel “Ever Ace” arrived at the Colombo Port in the Sri Lankan capital late on Tuesday, the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) said.
According to officials at the SLPA, the vessel arrived to unload 1,600 TEUs at the Colombo international container terminal (CICT) in the port.
The vessel sailing under the flag of Panama is some 400 meters in length. It weighs about 235,000 tons and can carry 23,992 TEUs.
SLPA said that there are only 24 ports in the world with the capacity to handle such mega vessels, with the Colombo Port being the only one in South Asia. Boasting a depth of 18 meters, CICT is the first and only deepwater terminal in South Asia capable of handling such large vessels afloat.
There are currently three container terminals in the Colombo Port — the Jaya container terminal (JCT) operated by SLPA, the South Asian gateway terminal (SAGT), and CICT, which is operated and managed by China Merchants Port.
As the only deepwater container terminal in South Asia, CICT has helped the Colombo port significantly enhance its position in the world shipping industry since its opening in 2013.
Source: Xinhua