ULC vessel runs aground near Hamburg

The 19,100-TEU containership CSCL Indian Ocean remains stuck on a sandbank in the River Elbe outside Germany’s Port of Hamburg after a failed rescue attempt at high tide earlier this afternoon.

   An ultra-large containership ran aground near the Port of Hamburg last night and remains stuck in its position in the River Elbe after a failed rescue attempt at high tide earlier this afternoon.
   The CSCL Indian Ocean grounded on a sandbank in the Elbe en route to Hamburg’s Eurogate Container Terminal at around 10 p.m. local time on Feb. 3 due to a power failure, according to the Hamburg Harbourmaster’s office. Some local media reports say the ship’s captain told the Brunsbüttel Vessel Traffic Centre the vessel’s steering gear had failed.
   At around 1:00 p.m. (CET) today, seven tugs were deployed in an attempt to shift the massive 19,100-TEU containership, but were ultimately unsuccessful in doing so.
   Port authorities are now considering unloading containers from the vessel or siphoning its fuel in order to make it easier, and safer, to move the ship. Another option would be to deploy dredging vessels to remove sand and silt from alongside the ship, effectively deepening the channel so that the ship can be refloated.
   The Hamburg Harbourmaster’s office said there are no signs of pollution or damage to the hull of the vessel resulting from the incident, and no injuries have been reported.
   According to ocean carrier schedule database BlueWater Reporting, the Hong Kong-flagged CSCL Indian Ocean serves on the Ocean3 Alliance’s AEX1/AEC1 service between Asia and North Europe. The AEX1/AEC1 operates with 12 18,208-TEU average vessels, five of which are supplied by CSCL and the rest from United Arab Shipping Co.
   In addition to Ocean3 member CMA CGM and its subsidiary lines ANL, Delmas and USL, a number of other carriers purchase slots on the loop, including CKYHE Alliance members COSCO, “K” Line, Yang Ming, Hanjin, and Evergreen Line, as well as independent north-south specialist Hamburg Sud and subsidiary Alianca.