Port of Wilmington, Delaware welcomes the world’s newest reefer ship, Seatrade’s m/v Atlantic Klipper, on her Maiden Voyage to the U.S.

Wilmington, Del – The Diamond State Port Corporation (DSPC), owner and operator of the Port of Wilmington, Delaware, Pacific Delaware, Inc., Murphy Marine Services, Inc., and Seatrade Reefer Chartering (Seatrade) welcomed the arrival of Seatrade’s newest vessel, m/v Atlantic Klipper, on her maiden voyage to the U.S. on Thursday, the 24th of February, 2011. Seatrade, celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2011, is the world’s largest operator of refrigerated (reefer) vessels and, specializes in the carriage of perishable cargo. Pacific Seaways, a Santiago, Chile based consortium of growers and exporters, has chartered the m/v Atlantic Klipper and several other Seatrade ships to maintain a scheduled service to load Chilean fruit in the ports of Caldera, Coquimbo, and Valparaiso for delivery to the Port of Wilmington from December through April. On this call to Wilmington, the Atlantic Klipper will discharge her cargo of more than 7700 pallets of table grapes and stone fruit for distribution throughout North America.

“We congratulate Seatrade on the recent addition of m/v Atlantic Klipper to its reefer fleet,” said Gene Bailey, Diamond State Port Corporation’s Executive Director. “Seatrade’s continued investment in growing their fleet underscores its commitment of service to their customers and to leadership in the very sophisticated transport of high value, perishable cargo on trade lanes throughout the world.”

The ship was delivered on the 4th of January, 2011 at Kitanihon Shipbuilding in Hachinohe City, Japan and christened on the 4th of February, 2011 in Valparaiso, Chile. She is 165 meters long (541.3 feet), and can carry 5400 pallets under-deck and 247 forty-foot long shipping containers on deck, 200 of which can be refrigerated when powered up by special electrical connections installed onboard.

She boasts two 40 metric ton cranes and two 8 metric ton cranes which allow for a speedy selfsustained loading or discharging of both containers and of palletized cargo. The vessel can reach a maximum speed of 21.5 knots ensuring its cargo gets to market quicker than that carried by its competitors. The m/v Atlantic Klipper has a sister ship, the m/v Baltic Klipper, which was launched in September 2010.

About the Port of Wilmington, Delaware

Founded in 1923, the Port of Wilmington is a full service Mid-Atlantic seaport on the Delaware River strategically located serving over 200 million North American consumers by overnight truck and rail delivery. Wilmington ranks as the nation’s leading gateway for imported perishable cargo, the world’s top banana port, and the owner and operator of one of the largest on-dock cold storage complexes in North America. An economic engine for the State of Delaware and the region, it is responsible for 14,900 jobs, $405 million in business revenue, and $28 million in annual local taxes. The Port is owned and operated by the Diamond State Port Corporation, a corporation of the State of Delaware.