What's Happening in Rosedale, MD…

The biggest container ship ever to arrive in Maryland, the Gunde Maersk, recently dropped anchor at the Helen Delich Bentley Port of Baltimore.

The huge Neo-Panamax cranes and a shipping channel 50 feet deep made it possible for the ship, which can handle 11,000 Twenty-foot Equivalent (TEU) containers, to enter the port.

Larry Hogan, Maryland’s governor, described the port as one of the largest economic drivers for the state, and said it will be able to continue handling large container vessels. He added the state will continue to make the investments necessary to insure the health of the port, and its continued operation. Officials who manage operations like this can use brochure printers to explain its advantages.

Before the Gunde Maersk’s visit, the largest container vessel to drop anchor at the port had a capacity of 9,700 TEU containers. These giants are able to visit Baltimore because of its deep channel, and in fact, there are not very many ports on the East Coast that can handle ships of this size. Ports America Chesapeake operates the Seagirt Marine Terminal in conjunction with the Maryland Department of Transportation Maryland Port Administration.

State officials recently okayed a contract to complete filling in a wet basin at the port, which will create additional land near the piers to help in handling the increasing amount of traffic.