OOCL proudly announced the naming of our latest containership, the OOCL Hong Kong, at a christening ceremony held at the Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) shipyard on Geoje Island. The OOCL Hong Kong was also celebrated as one of the largest containerships in the world by carrying capacity, and will be a welcome addition to strengthening the OOCL fleet this year.

In his ceremonial remarks, Mr. C. C. Tung, Chairman of Orient Overseas (International) Limited addressed the importance of this occasion for the company. This is a very exciting time for all of us because today marks the first time that OOCL is receiving newbuildings in the 21 thousand TEU size. In fact, the OOCL Hong Kong will be a titan among containerships at sea, with a carrying capacity at 21,413 TEU. An important milestone for us at OOCL indeed.

While our industry seems to have the knack to ˜out do' one another in building larger containerships relatively quickly these days, this project is nonetheless an important moment for us. Faced with increasing competition and un-ending pressure on costs, we need to take the bold step in operating larger size ships of quality and high efficiency in order to stay relevant and compete effectively as a major container shipping company.

The last time that OOCL set the world record for the largest containership was back in April 2003 with the OOCL Shenzhen, an 8,063 TEU vessel, also built at the SHI shipyard.

In thanking the shipbuilder and commenting on the business partnership over the years, Mr. Tung said: We are very delighted to be on this journey together with our long-time partner and key shipbuilder of our large size ship fleet. Over the years, we have always appreciated the high quality and reliability of your products, which is absolutely essential for us to providing a top quality service. This is a major undertaking for us to build a containership of this size, requiring a lot of effort, commitment and coordination.

Among our distinguished guests at the ceremony we were very honored to have with us our Vessel Sponsor, Mrs. Mylene Seah, her husband as our Guest of Honor, Mr. Peter Seah, Chairman of DBS Bank, as well as his colleagues representing the bank.

Three years ago, the support that DBS provided towards the financing of our ships marked a wonderful expansion in our work with the bank, and we are very grateful that we could once again continue our collaboration through the financing work for the OOCL Hong Kong.

Your recognition and faith in OOCL as a business partner is a huge encouragement to us as the company continues to build the business from strength to strength by delivering exceptional products and services to customers, maintaining a healthy financial position and building a world class fleet, said Mr. Tung in expressing his gratitude to DBS Bank.

In his remarks at the ceremony, Mr. Seah also thanked OOCL for the collaboration over the years and for the invitation to the celebration. "Mylene, my colleagues and I are honored to be invited today for the launching and naming of OOCL's latest vessel, OOCL Hong Kong. This marvelous 21,413 TEU containership, the first vessel in the world to cross the 21,000 TEU mark, will further strengthen OOCL's fleet of vessels that place them among the world's most successful shipping companies. I wish OOCL continued success in all your business endeavours, and for OOCL Hong Kong, I wish you smooth sailing and full loading for every single voyage!

The OOCL Hong Kong will be serving the Asia-Europe trade lane on the LL1 service and her port rotation is: Shanghai / Ningbo / Xiamen / Yantian / Singapore / via Suez Canal / Felixstowe / Rotterdam / Gdansk / Wilhelmshaven / Felixstowe / via Suez Canal / Singapore / Yantian / Shanghai in a 77-day round trip.