Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC) will assign two 14,000-TEUers to the Far East-US west coast trade, the first time such mega ships have been deployed on the transpacific, reports Alphaliner.

The 14,000-TEU MSC Paloma and the MSC Valeria are to join its Pearl River Express (PRX) service, operated with Marseilles-based CMA CGM.

The two ships will reach the Long Beach Total Terminal, where the Paloma will dock on October 2 before the Valeria arrives on October 16. They both then sail for Oakland. Maersk takes slots on the China-Oakland leg.

The ships replace the 11,660-TEU MSC Francesca and the 13,000-TEU MSC Flavia to coincide with the peak of the peak transpacific.

The PRX service rotation is Fuzhou, Xiamen, Shenzhen-Chiwan, Hong Kong, Shenzhen-Yantian, Long Beach, Oakland and back to Fuzhou. Six of the ships on the rotation are between 11,300 and 14,000 TEU.