Maersk Line celebrates 80 years

IN AN era of mergers and acquisitions, an 80-year history is a rare milestone. But for Maersk Line, July 12 marked that historic moment – the date in 1928 on which Leise Maersk, the line’s first vessel, sailed from Baltimore on the US East Coast en route to the Far East via the Panama Canal with a cargo of Ford car parts and general cargo. Carrying 3 600 tons of cargo, the equivalent of 200 twenty-foot containers (teus), she reached Japan 59 days later and the Philippines on the 72nd day. On her return voyage she carried sugar, silk, and oil products. Numerous milestones followed as the line continued its expansion drive. The 1950s was a decade of expansion, especially in the Far East, with a service connecting Japan with emerging markets in South East Asia and the Middle East, the introduction of a “Round-the-world” line, and inclusion of West Africa in the network. 1956 was another significant date with the first container shipped aboard the Ideal X from Port Newark, New Jersey to Houston. But it was in 1973 that container shipping truly took off and Maersk Line ordered its first dedicated container vessels. In 1975 Adrian Maersk, with a 1 400 teu capacity, undertook the line’s first containerised sailing. As the container revolution gained momentum in the 1970s and 80s, AP Moller applied a more holistic approach to the transport chain, leading to further involvement in terminal and port development and the establishment of a logistics company (Maersk Logistics, originally called Mercantile). In 1996 Regina Maersk became the world’s largest, most modern container vessel with a 6 000 teu capacity and a crew of 15. But she only ruled the seas for a year – in 1997, the 6 600 teu Sovereign Maersk took over but was eclipsed in 2006 by Emma Maersk with capacity for more than 11 000 teus. That’s 65 times more than the Leise Maersk 80 years ago and clearly a record waiting to be broken!