OOCL has christened its latest container ship, OOCL Hong Kong, at a ceremony at the Samsung Heavy Industries shipyard on Geoje Island.

The vessel has a capacity of 21,413 TEUs and is one of the largest in the world.

“This is a very exciting time for all of us because today marks the first time that OOCL is receiving newbuildings in the 21,000 TEU size,” said C. C. Tung, chairman of Orient Overseas (International) Limited. “In fact, the OOCL Hong Kong will be a titan among container ships at sea, with a carrying capacity at 21,413 TEUs. An important milestone for us at OOCL indeed. While our industry seems to have the knack to ‘out do’ one another in building larger container ships relatively quickly these days, this project is nonetheless an important moment for us. Faced with increasing competition and unending pressure on costs, we need to take the bold step in operating larger size ships of quality and high efficiency in order to stay relevant and compete effectively as a major container shipping company.”

OOCL Hong Kong will be deployed on the Asia-Europe trade, operating the LL1 service, according to OOCL.