Source: NSW Ports
28th June 2020
NSW Ports is pleased to welcome the largest capacity container ship to ever call at Port Botany, with the arrival of the record-breaking vessel, the Ural today.
Capable of carrying 10,662 Twenty Foot Equivalent Units (or TEUs - the standard measurement of a container), the spectacular Ural is almost double the size of the typical 5,500 TEU container ship currently visiting the port. At 299 metres long, 48.2 metres wide, and 66.5 metres high from keel to mast, the vessel is the size of three consecutive football fields and as high as a 15-storey building.
The Ural is named after the Ural mountain range that runs from north to south through western Russia and is one of six currently deployed on the South-East Asia - Australia trade route called the 'AAX1'. The vessel commenced its 42-day round-trip in Malaysia, calling at Singapore, before making its way around Australia's south-west and southern coast to call at Port Botany. It will be serviced at Patrick Terminals - Sydney AutoStrad, before departing on Tuesday 30 June 2020.
NSW Ports CEO, Marika Calfas says, "As Australia's premium container port, Port Botany handles more than 99% of NSW's container volume (with 2.6 million TEU per annum) and is inextricably linked to our lives and our lifestyles.
"We rely on Port Botany to facilitate the daily trade of everyday goods and critical supplies into our nation, while connecting our exporters with the global marketplace. In fact, nearly half (42%) of all goods in a Sydney household have been imported in a container through Port Botany – everything from food, beverages, footwear and floor coverings to mattresses, paints, fridges, televisions and toys."
Marika says that the arrival of the record-breaking Ural demonstrates the resilience of Port Botany, despite the current COVID-19 pandemic, "As an essential service, Port Botany has remained open and operating 24/7 to keep the goods flowing to service the people and businesses of NSW.
"Ships continue to arrive regularly at Port Botany, carrying supplies including food, beverages, retail and construction goods and manufactured items as well as bulk liquid imports of petrol, LPG and chemicals, with minimal disruption."
Year to date, as at May (11 months), FY20 total container volumes at Port Botany are down 6.4% on the prior year's volumes, which in relative terms is a strong position given what's happening around the world. Importantly, unlike many industries which have had to stand down their people, during this time our port workers have remained in employment, working around the clock to facilitate our trade needs.
Marika adds that arrival of this spectacular sized ship also demonstrates Port Botany's ability to accommodate the next generation of global container vessels, "While most ships calling into Australia are around 5000-6000 TEU, container vessel sizes are increasing due to the steady increase in the international container freight task and the consolidation of freight by shipping lines to achieve economies of scale. We are pleased to welcome these large vessels and expect to see more visit Port Botany in the future."