Cosco Europe starts its first Mediterranean voyage from Lianyungang, in Jiangsu province, with 9,080 containers, on Aug 22. [Photo by Wang Jianmin & Ju Haitao/Xinhua]

A freighter, Cosco Europe, began its maiden voyage from Lianyungang port, in Jiangsu province, on Aug 22, loaded with 9,080 containers, as part of the China Cosco Shipping Corp's new service to the Mediterranean and United States West Coast.

The company has deployed 16 vessels, each with a 10,000-TEU container capacity for the service, with the ships departing the port of Qingdao, in Shandong province, stopping at Lianyungang port, and other ports such as Shanghai and Ningbo before heading for the Mediterranean. When they return, the ships stop in Shanghai and Ningbo then begin a second leg to the ports of Long Beach, California, and Seattle, Washington on the US West Coast.

Chen Dong, the general manager of the Lianyungang New Oriental International Container Terminal, explained that, because this route is set for large, high-speed ships, the inclusion of Lianyungang indicates the port's great potential in shipping.