Containership operator Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL) in the UK is to move its Liverpool operations for its Europe-Canada trade to the port’s deepwater container terminal Liverpool2.

The new vessel [to the route] has a capacity 67% greater than the OOCL Belgium, which it is replacing. The 294-metre OOCL St Lawrence has a capacity of 5,024 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units).

OOCL has also confirmed that Liverpool2 will be a permanent call, as part of a rotation including Montreal, Bremerhaven, Antwerp and Le Havre.

More on this story reports The Business Desk. 

Afloat adds OOCL St. Lawrence made its maiden call to the English north-west port on the Irish Sea with a call which took place on 29 September and departed last Thursday bound for Montreal. The 2005 built containership will be the first 'Panamax' vessel to serve the trans-Atlantic route. 

In recent years Afloat has reported on another OOCL service out of the UK to Asia. This is based however on the east coast Port of Felixstowe from where vessels serving is the OOCL Hong Kong which when launched in 2017 was then the largest 'box-boat'.

The leadship of the 'G' -class carries 21,413 TEU is featured in a more recent report from earlier this year.