World's largest container ship made in Taizhou leaves home

The world's biggest container ship, the Xinfu 104, left its berth with the help of several tugboats and 21 marine patrol ships on March 27, departing the premises of Yangzi Xinfu Shipbuilding Co Ltd – based in Taizhou city, in East China's Jiangsu province.

The Xinfu 104 is quite literally a maritime goliath that was independently developed by China and made in Taizhou.

It integrates the latest in technology and intelligent means for managing and running Chinese container ships.

According to the specifications, it's 399.99 meters long, with a deck area covering 24,000 square meters – equivalent to 3.3 soccer fields. When fully loaded, the maximum number of stacked containers can pile up to the equivalent of 22 floors of a conventional residential building.

In order to safeguard the towing process in the Jiangsu section of the Yangtze River, the Taizhou agency of Maritime Safety Administration of China coordinated with a series of maritime agencies along the river – covering many of Jiangsu's cities such as Changzhou, Wuxi, Suzhou and Nantong.

Four ship traffic management centers and 21 marine patrol ships join the team to protect the Xinfu 104. [Photo/WeChat ID: tzfabu]

According to the local authorities, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding Group – the parent company of Yangzi Xinfu Shipbuilding – accepted an order of six ships in the series and the Xinfu 104 is the third. All the ships are scheduled to be delivered in 2023.

Work gets underway at the yard being operated by the Yangzijiang Shipbuilding Group. [Photo/WeChat ID: tzfabu]