Walvis Bay Stevedoring had a busy weekend discharging cargo from a number of container vessels, a Roro (40 vehicles), a salt vessel and the huge container vessel, Maersk Sheerness. The docking of the Maersk Sheerness, last Friday was a historic milestone for the port of Walvis Bay, as it was the largest container vessel that had docked at the new container terminal. The ship, with a length of 335m, beam of 43m and a container capacity of 7500 twenty foot equivalent unit (TEU) was brought into the port as a test.

The port management were also on the quayside to observe the docking. The acting CEO of Namibian Ports Authority, Kavin Harry, told the media that “the arrival of the vessel is of great significance, not only for Namport, but for the entire country, as this is not only consistent with our values and drive to becoming Africa’s Number One Port Authority but also places Namibia in a more competitive position as it now can accommodate bigger vessels.”

He added that the consistent drop in fuel prices was one of the biggest driving forces behind the paradigm shift. He also said a another remarkable shift is the fact that large companies such as Maersk are forming partnerships with their rivals to move more containers in order to save costs.

Well done Maersk!