Thanks to its unique depth, the largest vessels in the world will be moored in the Port of Rotterdam this week.
On Friday 16 August, all attention will focus on the first visit of the Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller.
With a capacity of 18,000 TEU (twenty-foot containers), a length of 399 metres and a width of 59 metres, this vessel is by far the largest container ship in the world.
Depth
The largest vessels in the world visit the Port of Rotterdam. This is due to the depth of the port, up to almost 23 metres (the height of an eight-storey block of flats), and thanks to the Eurogeul, a channel in the North Sea stretching for 57 kilometres and with a guaranteed depth of 25 metres.
This depth is mainly needed for iron ore vessels and oil tankers. When fully loaded, the Vale Rio has a draught of 23 metres and the Ti Europe a massive 24.5 metres.
The Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller ‘only’ has a maximum draught of 16 metres. The unique thing about the Port of Rotterdam is that this ship can access the Europahaven 24 hours a day, in normal circumstances.
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Press Release, August 16, 2013