Making a one-off visit over the weekend, the chartered Cap Mondego is the largest Chinese-built container ship to have appeared here and the largest to display Hamburg-Sud colours.
Until recently, the ship has been employed in its west coast South America/east coast North America service.
The ship has come to New Zealand on its southbound Trident service on a repositioning voyage that will see it enter the ANZL service to the Far East, one that includes calls at Auckland, Tauranga and Lyttelton.
It will transfer to this run when it calls at Tauranga next Thursday.
When brand new, the vessel had called there on a positioning voyage from China, then on to Europe via the Trident east coast North America service.
Cap Mondego is owned by MS Georg Schulte Schiffs.mbH & Co.
KG, of Hamburg, and flies the Liberian flag.
Ordered from the Shanghai Shipyard and Chengxi Shipyard Co, it was laid down at Shanghai on August 12, 2007.
Launched on November 21, 2007, it was handed over on March 10, 2008.
The 35,991gt vessel has an overall length, including bulbous bow, of 230.93m.
Up to now, Hapag-Lloyd's Berlin Express was the largest Chinese-built boxship to call here.
This 35,303gt 2730teu vessel, completed at Shanghai by the Hudong shipyard in April 1990, called here on nine occasions from September 19, 1990, to August 3, 1993.
Three years later, the ship was renamed Cap Roca when bought by Hamburg-Sud.
Cap Mondego has a total container capacity of 3534teu, which is just slightly more than the combined capacity of Hamburg-Sud's three 1187teu Columbus New Zealand-class vessels that introduced cellular container ships to this port from June 1971.
Incidentally, Columbus New Zealand made 111 calls here over 27 years before it went to Alang for demolition in 1998.
The name was revived four years later by one of the Offen-owned, 45,803gt, 4112teu vessels built for charter to P&O Nedlloyd.
However, although the vessel carried Hamburg-Sud funnel colours, this company had nothing whatsoever to do with operating it.
The ship, which called here on its maiden voyage on December 14, 2002, went on to become Maersk Duffield in 2006.
It called here for the last time under this name a few weeks ago on September 3.
Under both names, it made a total of 66 visits, more than any other member of the class.
The ship is now trading under its built name Santa Rosanna and has been replaced by the Oltmann-owned Maersk Dunbar.
The departure of Maersk Denton last Saturday afternoon ended the local links of the seven Albatross-class vessels, introduced here on February 13, 2002, when P&O Nedlloyd Remuera arrived on its maiden voyage.
Maersk Dabou is to take over from Maersk Denton.
Saturday also saw the departure of the maiden-calling, 39,023gt, woodchip carrier New Oji Pioneer.
The Manila-registered vessel, on charter to Mitsui-OSK and owned by the Hanseatic Maritime Philippine Co, has been in service under this name since November 1994.
Its builders were the Mizushima yard of the Sanoyas Hishino Meisho Co at Kurashika.
While here, the vessel loaded the 117th shipment which had been carried in 45 individual hulls since the trade with Japan commenced in April, 1977.
Falcon, due to sail tomorrow, now claims the title of largest vessel to load logs here.
At 27,986gt and 50,295dwt, this newcomer has an overall length of 189.80m.
The ship is a normal bulk carrier that has no provision to carry logs as deck cargo.
Until this vessel appeared on the scene, the 1996-built New Fantasy, here from May 17-24, 2001, was the largest log ship.
Comparative figures are 27,116gt, 45,331dwt and marginally longer at 190.02m.
Completed on October 25, 2001, Falcon was built and engined at Mitsuis Tamano yard.
It commenced its career as the Singapore-owned Ikan Serong, followed by service under the Malaysian flag as Alam Maju.
Now registered in the Marshall Islands, the vessel was bought in 2005 by it present owner Falcon Shipping LLC and is managed by Eagle Shipping Investments, both of New York.
