When Malcom Purcell McLean & Keith Tantlinger started the journey of containerization on 26th April 1956 with 58 containers, they could have never imagined a scenario in which a single container terminal would handle 6.6 million TEUs in a single year..!!
This is the situation in 2023 with Shandong Container Terminal in Shanghai’s Yangshan Deepwater Port, set to handle 6.6 million TEUs in 2023..
There are 7 Chinese ports, 2 Asian Ports (Singapore, Busan), and just 1 Non-Asian port (Rotterdam) in the Top 10 container ports in the world..
Shanghai (1), Ningbo-Zhoushan (3), Shenzhen (4), Qingdao (5), Guangzhou (6), Tianjin (8) Hong Kong (9)..
Shandong Container Terminal, the operator of Yangshan Port’s fourth phase in Shanghai, recognized as the largest automated container terminal globally, is on track to process 6.6 million TEUs within 2023, surpassing its projected capacity of 6.5 million TEUs, according to a South China Morning Post report..
The SCMP reports that this subsidiary of the Shanghai International Port Group (SIPG) is backed by a hefty 12.8 billion yuan investment (equivalent to US$1.8 billion) overseeing the terminal’s advancements since its inception at the end of 2017..
The power of automation in container terminals is strongly visible in this video by Eagle Eye..
The terminal uses an impressive fleet of 145 automated guided vehicles, the largest of any such fleet worldwide, which are integral to the round-the-clock loading, unloading, and transportation of containers..
Currently, the terminal handles more than a quarter of Yangshan’s total container volume, which stood at 24 million TEUs in 2022 out of a total port throughput of 47.3 million TEUs in 2022.. Shanghai has held the title of the number 1 container port for 13 years running..
Judging by the video, it is unlikely that Shanghai will relinquish this title anytime soon as its closest competitor Singapore (2) is a good 10 million TEUs behind Shanghai at 37.2 million TEUs in 2022..
