TAMPA, Fla. — One of the world's largest cargo ship has arrived in Port of Tampa.
- M/V Piraeus, one of world's largest cargo ships, comes to Tampa
- Ship arrived at Port Tampa Bay Tuesday morning
- COSCO has targeted moving about 500 containers a week to Tampa
The M/V Piraeus arrived Tuesday morning on its first voyage into Tampa Bay.
The ship began unloading its first shipment of containers Tuesday morning. The PIRAEUS is COSCO'S first vessel to arrive at Port Tampa Bay after the weekly service was announced last month.
A lunchtime celebration at Port Tampa Bay's container terminal will feature a Latin band, a water cannon welcome for the PIRAEUS, and a short ceremony with executives from COSCO, the Panama Canal Authority, Ports America, & Port Tampa Bay.
Cosco Shipping Lines, based in Shanghai, is one of the largest container shipping companies in the world, moving cargo from four ports in China, across the Pacific Ocean, through the Panama Canal, and now to Port Tampa Bay.
Incoming goods will include furniture, e-commerce, construction materials, food & beverages and textiles. COSCO's service to Tampa will enhance efficiency and market access for both imports and exports. As trucking costs have increased, Port Tampa Bay's location and proximity to the I-4 corridor is recognized as offering the lowest delivery cost solution for exporters and importers.
"This means we can cut the time to get cargo direct from Asia closer by a third to slicing it right in half and reach out to more customers who are now going to look at our port for further growth," said Port Tampa Bay President/CEO Paul Anderson.
COSCO has targeted moving about 500 containers a week, most of them inbound and arriving in Tampa every Monday. Imports from China will take 31 days to reach Port Tampa Bay - exports from the port to China will take 27 days.