The maiden voyage of the “Hamburg Express” reaches its climax on 4 November 2024. The newest container ship in the Hapag-Lloyd fleet is christened in the Port of Hamburg by Eva-Maria Tschentscher, Hamburg’s First Lady and wife of the First Mayor of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, Peter Tschentscher.

The newbuilding is the largest container ship ever to sail under the German flag. It is the flagship of the “Hamburg Express” class. This class consists of twelve container ships with a capacity of up to 23,664 TEU. The containerships of this class are 399 metres long and 61 metres wide. They are deployed on the strategically important East-West routes for Hapag-Lloyd.

All ships are powered by dual-fuel technology. Ideally, the ships will be able to run on green methane. This eliminates 95 per cent of greenhouse gases compared to conventional marine diesel. The ships can already run on LNG. This reduces CO2 emissions by 15 to 25 percent, sulphur dioxide emissions by up to 95 percent and soot particles by 95 percent. Other innovations include an optimised hull, high-efficiency propellers and shore power. The “Hamburg Express” class is a key part of Hapag-Lloyd’s efforts to achieve ‘net zero’ operations for its fleet by 2045.

‘But the ‘Hamburg Express’ is more than just a symbol of technological progress. It is already the fifth ship to bear this proud name. For us, Hamburg is much more than just our headquarters; it has been the home port of our ships for almost two centuries. The city is closely linked to the maritime heritage that has shaped our identity for more than 175 years,’ said Rolf Habben Jansen, chairman of the executive board of Hapag-Lloyd AG.

Construction of the “Hamburg Express” began on 25 November 2022 at the Hanwha Ocean shipyard in Okpo, South Korea.