The French shipping line CMA CGM has opted for Southampton in which to dock the super-vessel Marco Polo. The biggest man made object ever to move across our planet, the Marco Polo simply dwarfs everything that has gone before her.
Marco Polo is the first in a new generation of super-vessels as the shipping industry continues to grow. Bigger than the Queen Mary 2 by some considerable margin, the container ship is also bigger than the nuclear powered French aircraft carrier, Charles de Gaulle.
She can carry more than 16,000 containers, as well as boasting the latest environmental technologies. She has an electronically controlled engine, reduced fuel consumption and low CO2 emissions, as well as a water treatment system.
Improvements to the Southampton port have meant that it is now capable of welcoming these super-vessels, with further improvements scheduled to dredge the port over the next couple of years. Marco Polo is leaving for Hamburg, Germany tomorrow.