ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd carried the first ever six 53 feet ocean capable containers and nine 45 feet (14 meters) containers for Ormat Technologies, a leading Israeli thermal power provider, on board "ZIM USA" from the port of Shanghai to Ashdod, Israel.
"ZIM USA" is operated in Zim's AME container service (Asia / India Sub Continent East Med), serving the trade between Asia and India ports to Israel and the Mediterranean.
53-feet containers are a relatively new development in the shipping industry. Cargo containers are designed primarily large, unsuitable for carriage ordinary containers (20 to 40 ft).
Huge container transport requires special preparation and professional handling by Zim's special cargo team, who specializes in shipping Out of Gauge (OOG) cargo, especially large or heavy.
53 feet containers (about 16 meters long) have been in use for intermodal transportation in the U.S. but have not been strong enough for ocean shipments, however, the new reinforced containers were designed specifically for that purpose.
