"With the 'Cartagena Express', another modern ship within our 10,500 fleet is being launched, which is best suited for journeys between Europe and South America's west coast, due to size, design and refrigerated container capacity" said Anthony J Firmin, COO of Hapag-Lloyd. "As one of the market leaders on the South American routes, Hapag-Lloyd also has the most competitive ships in the area and can offer its customers the best service."
Image: Hapag Lloyd
In addition to the "Cartagena Express" and the first named ship of the new "Valparaíso Express" class, the second of the Neo-Panmax series was already delivered to Hapag-Lloyd at the end of 2016. The "Callao Express" is to be christened in April in the Peruvian port of Callao. All three new ships will be used for the SW-Service, which connects northern Europe with the Caribbean and the South American west coast weekly. The "Cartagena Express" will in future service the ports Rotterdam, London, Hamburg, Antwerp, Le Havre, Caucedo, Cartagena, Manzanillo (Panapa), Buenaventura, Callao, Puerto Angamos, Valparaíso, Callo, Buenaventura, Manzanillo (Panama), Cartagena, Caucedo and back to Rotterdam.
All three new ships are under the German flag and are of DNVGL class. The "Cartagena Express" is 333 metres long and 48 metres wide. On board, up to 19 container rows can be placed next to each other and 18 boxes can be stored, one above the other. South America has a particularly high export volume of chilled or frozen foods such as fruits, fish, meat and vegetables. The vessel can carry up to 123,500 tonnes with a maximum draught of 15 metres.