#LargeContainership - One of the largest ever containerships in recent years docked in Dublin Port on the same day of the longest cruiseship to call to the capital, writes Jehan Ashmore.

Afloat.ie has in recent weeks been monitoring CMA CGM Shipping’s containership Nicolas Delmas, with a capacity of 2,207(TEU) twenty foot-long equivalent units, which on Tuesday had discharged and loaded at Peel Ports operated MTL terminal in Ringsend. See, Maersk Line’s new Seago Line route: UK-Ireland-Spain (Algeciras: hubport) for Med/ North African ports.

The call of Nicolas Delmas provided an ideal opportunity to visit Dublin Port where on the opposite side of the port, MSC Cruises giant cruiseship MSC Splendida at 333m long had berthed. This was was the second successive season to the capital by the 4,600 passenger capacity ship.   

CMA-CGM's rotation of Nicolas Delmas is operated in a butterfly loop with the Windhoek, 1,577(TEU) on the FAS Irish Sea Feeder service that began in 2003. In fact, Windhoek is due to arrive this evening from Liverpool. Normally the rotation involves the following ports: Antwerp, Southampton, Liverpool, Dublin, Belfast, Greenock, Le Havre and then a return to Antwerp.

The Marsaille based CMA-CGM was formed in 1996 following a merger between Compagnie Maritime d'Affrètement (CMA) and Compagnie Générale Maritime (CGM). The latter partner, CGM had previously run a ‘liner’ side of the business with the famous classic liners 'France' and ‘Normandie’.

In the case of MSC Cruises, they are a parent company of Geneva based Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) that continues likewise of rivals CCM-CGM, in the operation of very large containerships fleets on global networks.

At the top of this massive global business is the Maersk Group, which operates the world’s largest container shipping company through subsidiary Maersk Line. Recently the operator launched a new direct Cuba-Cork-continental Europe service.

So it was interesting to witness the contrasting shipping sectors from Dublin's East-Link toll-lift bridge. Also on that day President Higgins in a ceremony unveiled a plaque as the bridge is now named the 'Tom Clarke Bridge'. The bascule bridge completed in 1984 is the final river-crossing between the Liffey and the main port area leading out to the sea.