The COSCO PACIFIC, with a capacity of 10062TEU, is shared by multiple shipping lines and will cause great disturbances as we approach the Spring Festival which sees Chinese factories grind to a halt for the yearly public holiday. Shipping lines sharing slots on this vessel include: ANL, APL, CMA CGM, CNC, COSCO SHIPPING, GOLD STAR LINE, MAERSK, MCC, OOCL, PIL, SAFMARINE, SEAGO, SEALAND, WAN HAI, ZIM.
The vessel interrupted its scheduled voyage to stop at Columbo on the morning of 06.Jan to offload the 2 containers which caught fire and the vessel is to be under constant monitoring until inspections are complete. As of the morning of 07.Jan, the vessel is still berthed at Colombo.
The voyage covers several main loading ports in China: Shanghai, Ningbo, Shekou and Nansha – you can check the other ports in the image below:
Both alkaline and acidic batteries are categorised as class 8 corrosives in the IMDG (International Maritime Dangerous Goods) and if declared, would normally be stowed correctly in the hold following strict guidelines if a vessel has the authorisation to carry Class 8 goods. It is not clear whether the vessel had the authorisation for this, but that is not relevant at this point in time since no DG goods were declared by any parties shipping cargo on this vessel.
