Liner Service: Boston

Maersk Line joined the growing list of shipping lines calling at Massachusetts Port Authority’s Conley Container Terminal with the February 5 arrival of the Sealand Illinois at the Port of Boston.

Boston is now the second U.S. port of call after New York on Maersk Line’s TA5 service, followed by Baltimore, Norfolk, Savannah and Charleston. Overseas ports of call include Algeciras and Valencia in Spain, Sines in Portugal, and Gioia Tauro, Naples, Leghorn, La Spezia, and Genoa in Italy.

Sealand Illinois is the first of three Maersk Line ships, each with capacity of approximately 6,400 TEUs, scheduled to rotate through Boston.

"Ensuring consistent, reliable delivery of global shipments is extremely important to today’s supply chains," said Michael White, president of Maersk Line North America. "Coming back to the Port of Boston with our TA5 service offers customers a dependable, direct service between New England and Mediterranean markets. We will work closely with the Massachusetts Port Authority to make certain shippers have effective resources for optimal supply chain performance."

Other ocean container carriers calling Boston are Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), COSCO, K-Line, Yang Ming, Hanjin Shipping and Evergreen Line. Both Hanjin and Evergreen made maiden calls at Conley Terminal in 2014.

Conley Container Terminal has experienced steady growth during the last several years, with the 2014 box count totaling 214,243 TEUs, a 10 percent increase from 2013 and just short of the record 220,339 TEUs set in 2007.