As guest of honour, the Mayor of Southampton, Councillor Derek Burke, who has strong links with the shipping industry as a worker for a local stevedoring company, presented a commemorative plaque on board.
Chris Lewis, Managing Director, DP World Southampton, said: “We’re proud to welcome the APL SOUTHAMPTON on her maiden call to the port city of her name, a name that will be borne across the world’s largest trade route. It is only because of ocean carriers, such as the APL SOUTHAMPTON, that many of us are able to enjoy goods from clothing to the flat-screen TVs, desktop computers and kitchen fridges.
APL is an important customer to us and we look forward to providing the most productive service in the UK of any container terminal, with a seamless transition of goods for Britain’s importers and exporters.”
Attending the maiden call celebration with Mr Lewis and Councillor Burke were Doug Morrison, Port Director, Associated British Ports, Aart Hille Ris Lambers, Head of Commercial, DP World Southampton, Richard Handel, Port Manager Southampton, APL, and James Cowan, European Ship Planner, APL.
The APL SOUTHAMPTON, which is 347 metres long and 19 containers (45 metres) wide, with a gross tonnage of 128,929, sails on Loop 4 of the G6 Alliance: Southampton – Hamburg – Rotterdam – Singapore – South China – Ningbo.
Earlier this month APL, one of the world’s largest container carrier lines, received the US Coast Guard’s highest award for excellence in marine environmental protection, thanks to investment in green technology and a target to reduce carbon emissions by nearly a third by 2015.
For example, the APL SOUTHAMPTON, the newest and largest vessel in APL’s fleet, is its most environmentally-friendly and fuel-efficient one, with a ballast water treatment system to prevent contamination on discharge and an electronically-controlled main engine to enhance fuel efficiency.