Lekki Port in Nigeria, known as the country’s deepest seaport, recently welcomed the Maersk Edirne, a vessel with a capacity of 13,092 TEUs. This marks the largest container ship ever to dock in Nigeria.
The container vessel reached Lekki Port around 14:42 hours on Sunday, January 21, 2024, marking its docking time.
The new CMA CGM WAX service, comprising 13 large container vessels, includes the Maersk Edirne and is set to operate along crucial routes encompassing Xiamen, Qingdao, Shanghai, Singapore, Lekki Port, and Abidjan.
Lekki Port stands out in Nigeria as the sole port incorporated into this impressive port rotation.
Stakeholders’ Responses to the Attainment
Biodun Dabiri, the chairman of Lekki Port, shared his joy in achieving this milestone, emphasizing that Lekki Port’s modern facilities and world-class equipment enabled it to accommodate such large vessels.
While commending the management team for this achievement, he pointed out that Lekki Port has elevated Lagos State and Nigeria on the international maritime scene, marking the starting point for Nigeria’s pursuit of maritime hub status in the sub-Saharan African region.
Following the vessel’s arrival, Laurence Smith, chief operating officer of Lekki Port, characterized the berthing of such a sizable vessel as a positive development poised to make a substantial contribution to enhancing the Nigerian economy by facilitating increased cargo delivery and reducing shipping costs.
He commended the container terminal operator, Lekki Freeport Terminal, a subsidiary of CMA CGM for providing efficient terminal services to port users since the commencement of commercial operations in April 2023 for their dedicated efforts to make the container terminal the best in the country.
In addition, in response to the development, Mohammed Bello-Koko, managing director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), stated that the accomplishment validates the assurances provided by the Authority during the signing of the Presidential/Ministerial Performance Bond in December 2023
He lauded Adegboyega Oyetola, the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, for consistently supporting and endorsing the Authority’s initiatives and investments in employee upskilling and equipment renewal. This support contributed to making the berthing of the vessel seamless
More Insights
- Before this time, the largest commercial vessels to sail on Nigerian waters were “MV Stadelhorn” and “MSC Maureen” at Onne Port and Tin-Can Island Port Complexes respectively.
- Therefore, the berthing of a ship of measuring 367 meters at Lekki Deep Seaport represents a quantum leap forward.
- The Lekki Deep Seaport has by this feat in addition to its pioneering of full automation and facilitation of transhippment proven its readiness to exceed stakeholders’ expectations.