Milestones: Lázaro Cárdenas

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Lázaro Cárdenas Works Two Mega Ships Simultaneously for First Time Ever

Lázaro Cárdenas, Mexico’s newest and second largest container port, made history on June 2 with the simultaneously arrival of two post-Panamaxers, Maersk Line’s Svend Maersk and Carolina Maersk.

These "S-Class" ships are each 347-meters/1,139-feet long, 43-meters/141-feet wide, with a loaded draft of 15 meters/49 feet and carrying capacity of 9,850 TEUs.

The ships’ simultaneous arrival reflected the integration of new routings of Maersk’s AC2 trans-Pacific service designed to facilitate export shipments bound for Asia.

The full port rotation: Qingdao (China); Shanghai (China); Ningbo (China); Busan (Corea del Sur); Manzanillo (México); Lázaro Cárdenas (México); Balboa (Panamá); Buenaventura (Colombia); Lázaro Cárdenas; Qingdao.

The port believes Maersk Line's commitment to Lázaro Cárdenas reflects the collaborative efforts of "actors in the supply chain" and the investment in container terminal infrastructure and equipment that have made it one of the most efficient and productive container handlers in Latin America.

Lázaro Cárdenas Terminal Portuaria de Contenedores was built and operated by Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) under a 30-year concession granted in April 2003 by the port authority, API de Lázaro Cárdenas. The 83-hectare/205-acre complex now consists of two terminals with a total berth length of 1,216 meters/3,990 feet, alongside depth of 16 meters/52.5 feet, a railyard and a CFS Depot. It is equipped with eight ship-to-shore gantry cranes, 16 RTGs and nearly 900 reefer plug. Throughput exceeded one million TEUs in both 2012 and 2013.

Mega-ships Svend Maersk and Carolina Maersk berthed at the Lazaro Cardenas Container Terminal on June 2.
Photo/API de Lázaro Cárdenas