SOUTH Carolina Ports and the Port of Charleston have set the record docking their highest box capacity ship yet, the 16,868-TEU OOCL Iris, reports Fort Lauderdale's Maritime Executive.

While a smaller vessel by dimensions, it surpassed the capacity record set four years ago, highlighting the benefits of investments made in the port and advancements in container shipping.

The OOCL Iris was recently delivered as the second of a class of 10 new neopanamax containerships Orient Overseas Container Liner (OOCL) is putting into service.

OOCL highlights it is their first new neopanamax class in more than a decade with the prior vessels entering service in 2013 and 2014. Starting in 2023, the company also added a class of ultra-large container vessels, the industry's first 24,000 TEU ships.

Representing the next generation of neopanamax containerships, the OOCL Iris, along with NACKS-built sisters OOCL Bauhinia and OOCL Sunflower, not only comply with the latest environmental regulatory requirements but also set new benchmarks in areas of environmental design, energy efficiency, digital intelligence and safety.

These vessels feature an advanced energy efficiency system that provides recommendations for speed optimisation and trim adjustments.

The system monitors real-time fuel consumption and power usage of the main engine, generator, and boiler, offering valuable optimisation suggestions.