Hong Kong's harbour should be deep enough to accommodate the next generation of container ships, but their huge size will strain local port facilities.
South Korea's Hyundai Heavy Industries began taking orders yesterday for the next generation of giant container ships, which will offer 30 per cent more declared capacity than any vessel currently being built in the class.
The unprecedented twin-engine design of the new 13,000 teu (20-foot equivalent unit) Hyundai ship will allow it to call at ports such as Hong Kong, where water depth could be an issue. Even when fully loaded, the vessel will only require 13.5 metres of water, as its two smaller propeller engines draw less than a single large one.
Its beam, however, will be a record 54.2 metres or 21 containers across - too wide for many cargo cranes. And at a staggering 382 metres long, it will be too big for the single berths at Hong Kong's older container terminals.
Hyundai, the world's biggest shipyard by sales and production, joined German classification society Germanischer Lloyd in Hamburg to unveil blueprints for the ship, which brokers say could cost as much as US$150 million per unit.
Hyundai did not reveal the price but the partners said yesterday the design had passed all technical requirements. Even if ordered today, the first vessel would not be ready until 2009 due to a backlog of orders at the yard.