Papua New Guinean-located South Pacific International Container Terminal (SPICT) and Motukea International Terminal (MIT), operated by International Container Terminal Services, Inc.’s (ICTSI) in the ports of Lae and Motukea, respectively, established a record when they welcomed the largest boxship to ever dock in Papua New Guinea and the Pacific Islands region.
“Kota Gabung”, a 2,754-TEU gearless container ship, has made its inaugural call in Lae on the 12th November and then on 17th November in Motukea adjacent to Port Moresby.
ICTSI states that the South Pacific International Container Terminal is now equipped with two post-Panamax ship-to-shore cranes, which can service up to 6,000-teu vessels, and these cranes are currently the largest port equipment in Papua New Guinea.
Additionally ICTSI informs, that Motukea International Terminal has doubled its waterside capability this year by adding another mobile harbour crane to ensure safer and faster turnaround of ships.
The container ship “Kota Gabung” is operated by Mariana Express Line as part of the North Asia Express (NAX) service, which is a vessel sharing agreement with Swire Shipping Line.
The NAX service connects Eastern and Southern China main ports to Papua New Guinea and Northern Australia.
Robert Maxwell, ICTSI South Pacific chief executive officer, said that “This milestone highlights the growing confidence in ICTSI South Pacific terminals for delivering best-in-class service. It is aligned with our recent strong investment in pursuit of our vision of making our facilities the most modern and efficient port terminals in the Pacific Islands region,” and he added that, “We appreciate Mariana Express Line Ltd., a subsidiary of Pacific International Lines, for the trust in us to ensure the success of this gearless vessel addition to PNG trade. We are looking forward to seeing more gearless vessels being deployed in the future.”
