World’s largest container christened in Belgium

The Marco Polo, flying a British flag and said to be the world’s biggest container ship by French owners CMA CGM, was given its champagne christening in the Belgian port of Zeebrugge yesterday. “Marco Polo’s expeditions to Asia made us dream 700 years ago. Today we have a new connection with that continent,” said port president Joachim Coens, quoted by Belga news agency. The ship, which is 396 metres long – the length of four football fields – was built in South Korea and was to head back to Asia after a stop in France. It is said to be the largest container in the world by capacity, as it can hold 16,020 TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit containers) – or 97km of containers lined up end to end. CMA CGM has commissioned two more of the same tonnage expected to be delivered next spring, each costing between €150 and €200 million.