UAE: CMA CGM’s Largest Container Ship Visits Jebel Ali Port

The largest container ship of French shipping company CMA CGM, the 365 metre long Christophe Colomb, on April 24 called at DP World’s flagship Jebel Ali Port for the first time, reinforcing the port’s role as a regional gateway for the new generation of mega liner vessels.

The ship, which has a nominal capacity of 13,800 TEU (twenty-foot equivalent container units), was welcomed by DP World officials and a commemorative plaque marking the occasion was presented by Ravikumar Panicker, Account Manager, DP World, UAE Region, to Pierre Gilles Coat, Master of the Ship, in the presence of senior officials from DP World and CMA CGM.

Christophe Colomb is one of only 29 new generation mega container vessel (nominal capacity of 13,000 TEU or more) in the world. Jebel Ali Port has catered to 20 visits by 16 of these behemoths of the sea this year.

Mohammed Al Muallem, Senior Vice President and Managing Director, DP World, UAE Region, said:

“DP World enjoys a strong relationship with CMA CGM and welcomes the move to enhance their service through Jebel Ali with the introduction of Christophe Colomb. The steady increase in the number of new generation ships we are handling at our flagship facility signals both confidence in the UAE economy and the arrival of the era of mega container liners. Economies of scale mean that liner shipping companies serving the wider region need a facility like Jebel Ali that provides efficient services for both transhipment cargo and cargo that originates from or is destined for this market. DP World is committed to meeting our customers’ changing needs when and where they need them.”

Arnaud Coudray, Commercial Regional Manager, CMA CGM Gulf said:

“CMA CGM is strengthening its presence in the Middle East. The deployment of the FAL 1 (French Asia Line) service with the largest vessels in the CMA CGM fleet to Jebel Ali Port en route from Europe is another concrete step forward in our commitment to Dubai and the region. We believe that, given the increasing demand on the Europe-Asia route and the efficient cooperation we receive from DP World, this new call will be a great success.”

DP World is presently working on adding new capacity at Jebel Ali with the extension of existing container terminal 2 and the development of a new container terminal, Terminal 3, which will be able to receive the next generation 18,000 TEU container ships by 2014. The expansion will raise the flagship port’s total capacity to 19 million TEU.

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Dredging Today Staff, April 26, 2012