Container ship breaks mark of capacity on the Panama Canal

Posted on 2017-09-01

The Panama Canal received on Tuesday, August 22, the CMA CGM Theodore Roosevelt, the ship of higher capacity that has gone through the new locks, serving a route between Asia and the East coast of the United States and reaffirming the impact of the extended route.

"Transit today not only demonstrates the growing success and acceptance of the maritime industry by the expanded Canal, but also its impact on redesigning the world trade," said the administrator of the Panama Canal, Jorge Luis Quijano.

 On its way through the new locks, CMA CGM Theodore Roosevelt established a new record total of allowed TEUs (20-foot containers) in the Panama Canal with a mark of 14,863. The ship measures 365.96 meters long and 48.252 meters in width. To get an idea of its size, its size is similar to two pyramids of Giza, four Big Bens and eight statues of liberty.

The CMA CGM Theodore Roosevelt began his journey in Shanghai and arrive at ports on the East coast of the United States, including Norfolk, Savannah, and Charleston. These terminals have recorded growths and reached new brands of tonnage after the investments that made to accommodate ships that can now transit the expanded Canal. For this trip, the Theodore Roosevelt will also reach the port of New York and New Jersey, which completed a $1,600 million project to raise Bayonne bridge at 215 feet. The investment will enable the third largest port in the United States, receive first ships more than 9,500 TEU in three of its four terminals.

In addition to the new record of capacity, the ship took advantage of the environmental efficiencies of the channel expanded to save 29,561 tonnes of CO2, compared to where they would be issued if he had followed the alternate route from the Cape of good hope. Reducing emissions has been one of the keys to the expanded Canal, which since its first year of operation until last June, contributed to reducing 17 million tons of CO2, product of facilitating greater maritime freight on a shorter route.  

Source: Anpanama