23,964 TEU HMM Hamburg makes its first call in Hamburg

On late 31 August, Germany’s Port of Hamburg welcomed for the first time HMM Hamburg, a brand new containership belonging to the so-called Megamax-24 series of vessels.

The 23,964 TEU giant is one of twelve new boxships ordered by South Korean shipping company HMM from Daewoo Shipbuilding Marine & Engineering (DSME) and Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI). HMM Hamburg and its sister ships are among the largest containerships in the world.

Completed by DSME in July 2020, the 232,600 dwt ship features a length of 399.9 metres and a width of 61 metres. Twelve containers can be stowed above and below the ship’s deck as well as 24 rows of containers across the board.

“We are extremely pleased to be able to welcome the ‘HMM Hamburg’ to our port for the first time. All members of the HMM branch in Hamburg, which has been in existence for almost 30 years, are particularly proud of this first call. This naming manifests the special relationship between South Korea and the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,” James Kim, Managing Director of HMM (Germany) GmbH & Co. KG, Hamburg, commented.

The HMM Hamburg is deployed on THE Alliance’s FE-3 service between Asia and Europe and will be calling at the Port of Hamburg four times a year. The shipping alliance THE Alliance comprises shipping companies Hapag-Lloyd, Ocean Network Express (ONE), Yang Ming and HMM.

“We are of course very pleased that one of the largest container ships in the world is named after the Port of Hamburg and that we were able to welcome HMM Hamburg to Hamburg,” Axel Mattern, CEO Port of Hamburg Marketing, said.

“With the Elbe fairway adjustment, which will be completed shortly, the approach of large ships will be much easier in the future.”

The Port of Hamburg is connected to South Korea via eight liner services – three container services and five multi-purpose services. Last year, 255,000 TEU were transported between the Hanseatic city and the South Korean ports of Busan and Masan.

HMM Hamburg is expected to depart HHLA Container Terminal Burchardkai on 3 September 2020.