The arrival of the highest capacity container vessel in the world at Jebel Ali port in the UAE is a big boost for Bahrain.

MSC Daniela, with a nominal capacity of 14,000 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) is owned by Geneva-based Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) for whom the Bahrain National Shipping Agency (BNSA) are the local agents.

The BNSA organises a lot of cargo from Jebel Ali through smaller container ship feeder services to the kingdom and the arrival of this ship will be a big boost to the business Bahrain does through its relationship with MSC, said BNSA chief executive officer and president Ali Al Sharif.

'The arrival of such a large ship at Jebel Ali allows Bahrain to further extend the network of ports that can now connect directly with our port.

'This is a major boost for Bahrain as we will now see more business as more containers can now be transhipped from Jebel Ali to the northern Gulf through our own port.

MSC hosted a welcome reception at the terminal to mark the vessel's maiden call to Jebel Ali.

The ceremony was attended by BNSA general manager Udaya Perera.

MSC Daniela is currently the largest container vessel in operation. With an overall length of 366 metres, a 51-metre beam, gross tonnage of 135,000 tonnes and a maximum draught of 15 metres, she spearheads the new generation of mega-vessels (more than 12,000 TEU).

Along with her incoming sister size vessel MSC Daniela constitutes the newly upgraded Jade Service, securing reliable weekly service with very fast transit times from the west Mediterranean US, Canada, West Africa and South America.

Unlike other carriers, in these times reducing their operations, MSC, traditionally devoted to the market in the Gulf, tailored Jade with a view to offer the best service to all clients, remarkably those receiving reefers from South America.

Jebel Ali is the ideal hub for Jade and all other several MSC's oceanic services linking the world to from the Gulf.

'We are very happy that the first of our new 14,000 TEU container vessels is calling at Jebel Ali, a modern and efficient terminal able to handle such big vessels,' said MSC president Captain G Aponte.

'We take this opportunity to thank DP World for their consistent and pragmatic approach, and long-term partnership.

'It is also due to this that MSC is in a position to grow in the Gulf.

'Our plans for the future have not changed and the consolidation and improvement of our commercial activity in the area remain strong and focussed, with a view to satisfying clients in the Gulf and their world wide suppliers to the highest degree.'-TradeArabia News Service