One of the biggest container ships in the world has been officially named at a ceremony at the Port of Felixstowe.

Mega-ship the Marchen Maersk, operated by Maersk Line on its Asia-Europe service, is capable of holding 18,000 standard containers, or TEU - twenty-foot equivalent unit - as it’s known in the trade.

It’s classed as a ‘Triple-E’ vessel, which benchmarks its performance on energy efficiency, environmental performance and economies of scale, and its extremely low fuel consumption.

Clemence Cheng, chief executive officer at the Port of Felixstowe and managing director of HPH Europe division, said it was an honour to have the ship named at the port.

“Maersk Line has a long-term relationship with the Port of Felixstowe and we are honoured that the naming ceremony was held here. The Marchen Maersk is the 17th maiden call we have had by one of Maersk’s Triple-E vessels this year. Maersk Line and HPH share a commitment to service excellence and, together, we offer UK importers and exporters the most competitive route to get goods to market,” he said.

Brian Godsafe, managing director of Maersk Line UK & Ireland, said: “I’m delighted to host the naming ceremony of a Triple-E here in the UK, in the company of our customers and partners.

“The Triple-Es, with their efficiency, economies of scale and environmental benefits, are an embodiment of our business. It is fitting that some of our customers, the lifeblood of our business, are able to be a part of such an event at the Port of Felixstowe, which is a key partner in the services we offer.”

The naming ceremony was performed by Melanie Collins, wife of Adam Collins, managing director of PFE Express Limited, a forwarding, logistics and supply chain management company based in Witham.

The Port of Felixstowe has played host to a number of the latest generation of mega-vessels. The Marchen Maersk is the 46th ship of 18,000 TEU or more to call at the port so far this year.

Its ability to handle these huge vessels will be further enhanced when the Berth 9 extension is completed at the end of the year. The 190 metre extension will increase the length of Berths 8 and 9 to 920 metres and take the total berth length at the port to 3,900m.

Maersk Line’s Triple-E class set a new standard for vessel size on the Asia-Europe trade, the world’s largest, when they were first introduced in 2013. They are 399m long, have a beam (width at the widest point) of 59m and a maximum draught (the length below the water line) of 16m.