Ever Strong, the seventh in a series of ten 7024 TEU S-type vessels being built for Evergreen in Japan, took to the water for the first time on November 22 at
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ Kobe shipyard. She was named by Evergreen Group Vice Group Chairman S S Lin and launched by Lin Mei-Yin, wife of Paul Liao who, prior to his current role as Chairman of the Breeze Center shopping mall development in Taipei, was a key figure in Taiwan’s international trade sector.
Due for delivery in March 2007, Ever Strong is scheduled to enter service on the Transpacific Southwest (TPS) service linking Southern China, Hong Kong and Taiwan with the West Coast of North America.
The Evergreen Group is in the midst of taking delivery of 18 large post-Panamax containerships, the first of which was delivered in 2005. Eight 8063TEU C-types are already in service and the S-type series will complete in 2008.
Green ships for Evergreen
The Evergreen Group’s S-class vessels exceed all national and international regulations regarding environmental protection. In recognition of the ships’ green credentials, Ever Superb, the fifth in the series of vessels to enter service, was named Ship of the Year 2006 at the Lloyd’s List Maritime Asia Awards earlier this month. The sixth vessel in the series, Ever Steady, will be delivered towards the end of 2006.
The S-type vessels incorporate design features such as double-skinned hulls and fuel oil tanks located in protected locations within the transverse bulkhead spaces, thus minimising the risk of
oil pollution. A high capacity oily water separator enables the oil content of waste water to be reduced to just 15 ppm while much larger separated bilge oil and bilge holding tanks provide more storage capacity, enabling the vessels to avoid any discharge when sailing in sensitive areas and to maximise the amount of waste that can be held for ultimate disposal in specialised shore facilities. Similar arrangements have been made for handling sewage, grey water and cargo hold bilges when the vessels are in port or close to shore, while the ships also incorporate ‘cold-ironing’ – the ability to shut down all shipboard generators and switch to shore-based electricity supplies while in port.
With an overall length of 300 metres and a beam of 42.8 metres, the S-class vessels are able to carry containers 17 rows across on deck and 15 rows across below deck. They have a deadweight of 78,700 tonnes on a service draft of 14.2 metres. Each vessel has a single 10-cylinder Mitsubishi Sulzer 10RTA96C main engine developing 74,700bhp (54,900KW) to provide for a service speed of 25.3 knots.