THE Port of Oakland has docked the largest containership ever to call at ports in North America, the 12,562 TEU MSC Fabiola, which is part of the fleet of the world's second-largest shipping line, Geneva's Mediterranean Shipping Company.

The vessel arrived from Long Beach and was berthed at Oakland International Container Terminal for an overnight stay before departing for an 18-day transpacific voyage to Fuzhou and then onto four other ports in China.

"Hosting the largest containership ever to call in North America is what we mean when we say that the Port of Oakland is 'world class, world fast'," said Oakland port commission president Pamela Calloway.

"We invest in our terminals, navigation channels and landside infrastructure to welcome these ships because they are the cleanest and safest in the industry. They are also where the industry is headed and where we must head to continue to compete."

The MSC Fabiola is almost a quarter of a mile long, more than the length of four football fields or about equal to the height of a 55-storey building. If all of the containers that fit on the ship were put end to end, they would stretch almost 50 miles.