LR to Class First 10,000 TEU Containership

Lloyd’s Register is to class the world’s largest declared capacity container ships – four 10,000 teu vessels, to be built in Korea at Hyundai Heavy Industries for China Ocean Shipping Corporation (Cosco). The vessels will be delivered between late 2007 and mid-2008.

Each of the ships will measure 1,145 x 149.6 x 90.8 ft.(349 x 45.6 x 27.7) and is powered with a 12-cylinder 94,000 hp engine driving it to 25.8 knots. “The 10,000 teu container ships ordered by Cosco are the next step towards the 12,500 teu limit,” said David Tozer, Lloyd’s Register’s Business Manager - Container Ships. “Beyond 12,500 teu we expect that container ship and container terminal design will have to undergo significant change. For container ships, this might include the addition of a second screw, with the added capital investment that this entails.