Gary Gilbert, CEO of Freeport Harbour Company, Freeport Container Port and Grand Bahama Airport Company, right present Master Mariner Captain Tihomir Djura Andric of MSC Tomoko with a plaque on the occasion of the maiden voyage of the vessel to Grand Bahama. Left is Manuel Ruiz, Manager of MSC in The Bahamas.
|
Freeport, Grand Bahama
- One of the largest container ships ever made
its maiden voyage to the Bahamas on Wednesday when the mega ship MSC
Tomoko docked at Freeport Harbour.
The
MSC Tomoko, operated by Mediterranean Shipping Co., arrived from a stop
in Norfolk, Virginia before continuing on its trek to Asia through the
Suez Canal.
Gary
Gilbert, CEO of Freeport Harbour Company, Freeport Container Port and
Grand Bahama Airport Company described the vessel as being as big as
an aircraft carrier, but with a wider hull. MSC Tomoko docked
with 8,800 containers, and, “Augers well for expansion plans for the
container port involving the addition of 10 more cranes and six berths
- to make 2,000 metres of quay berthing space,” said Gilbert.
Another
large MSC vessel is expected next week and Gilbert noted that the harbour
in Grand Bahama, the deepest and largest in the Caribbean, provides
the foundation for the most diversified port in the Western Hemisphere.
“Freeport
Container Port has a very bright future and continues to grow larger
daily; it is the deepest harbour in the region and hemisphere and is
one of the proud jewels of Hutchison Whampoa's investments in Grand
Bahama,” said Mr. Gilbert.
Grand
Bahama's shipping facilities consist of a newly-refurbished $20 million
cruise ship terminal, an expanding Container Port, a world-class ship
care facility, and mega yacht repair facility.
THE WORLD’S LARGEST container ship, MSC Tomoko.
|
MSC
Tomoko was piloted into the harbour by Freeport Harbour Company’s
Director, Orlando Forbes along with her Captain, Master Mariner Captain
Tihomir Djura Andric, who has visited Freeport on a few occasions dating
back to 2000. MSC Tomoko draws 45 to 46 feet of water.
Manuel
Ruiz, Managing Director of MSC said the Tomoko is visiting as part of
a relatively new service operated by MSC dubbed the Golden Gate Service,
which features several ships -- most of them smaller in size than MSC
Tomoko.
Its
circuit includes: New York; Baltimore; Norfolk; Freeport, Bahamas; the
Suez Canal, Jedha, Saudi Arabia; Colombo, Sri Lanka; Singapore; Chiwan,
China; Hong Kong; Shanghai; Ningbo, China; Chiwan, China; Yiantian,
China; Singapore; Salalah, Oman.
SLIDE SHOW: MSC Tomoko berthed at Freeport Container Port and unloading containers
|
