---

Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI), the world's biggest shipbuilder, has begun construction of the first of five fuel-edfficient 19,000 TEU containerships for China Shipping Container Lines (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd.

The shipowner upgraded the original order for five 18,400 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) containerships to ones capable of delivering 600 more containers. These new vessels are set to be the largest containerships ever built.

The world's largest containerships will feature a 77,200 brake horsepower (bhp) electronically-controlled main engine and two EcoBallast seawater treatment systems. The main engine will maximize fuel efficiency, and reduce noise, vibrations, and carbon emissions by automatically controlling fuel consumption to suit sailing speed and sea conditions. The EcoBallast system can treat 3,000 cubic metres (cbm) of seawater per hour by filtering and sterilizing bacteria and plankton bigger than 50 micrometres (µm) with ultraviolet rays.

The first containership, measuring 400.0 metres in length, 58.6 metres in width and 30.5 metres in depth, is scheduled to be handed over by November this year. The remaining four containerships are slated to be delivered by the end of the first quarter 2015.

Hyundai Heavy has won orders for 102 ships out of the 372 ultra large containerships.