The 12,000 TEU Kota Pekarang has become the largest containership to date to call at the once obscure Port of Wilmington, North Carolina
The 12,000 TEU Kota Pekarang has become the largest containership to date to call at the once obscure Port of Wilmington, North Carolina. She is operated by Israeli shipping line ZIM in partnership with the 2M Alliance on a routing that links Asia to yet another US east coast port opened up by dredging. 'This is a monumental milestone for North Carolina Ports and the Port of Wilmington,' said North Carolina Ports executive director Paul Cozza. 'This is proof of concept that we are big ship ready and capable of handling some of the largest container vessels calling east coast ports today.'
The ship's visit to Wilmington follows closely behind the arrival of North Carolina Ports' third neo-Panamax crane. The third crane arrived in early April as part of the organisation's US$200 million capital improvements plan that seeks to expand the port's infrastructure in order to service a 14,000 TEU vessel, reported New York's Maritime Professional.
NC Ports' infrastructure upgrade plan includes a wider turning basin, berth enhancements, new neo-Panamax cranes and an overhaul of Wilmington's container terminal that will double the port's annual throughput capacity to 1.2 million TEU and triple its refrigerated container capacity to 1,000 plugs.
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