Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the Conley Container Terminal was served by two shipping routes connecting Boston with seven ports. Starting later this fall, Conley will be served by six routes that connect with 25 ports around the globe.
As recently as two years ago, Boston was served by two shipping routes run by MSC and Ocean Alliance, connecting Boston with Europe and China, respectively. Now, MSC will offer three routes, including one to India and one to China. Shipping company ZIM now offers Southeast Asia service, as does COSCO, whose ships will also stop in the Middle East. Obtaining access to ports in Southeast Asia has been a longtime goal of Massport.
The terminal has not yet seen a major increase in freight volume. In 2019, more than 200,000 20-foot equivalent units (standard shipping containers, also called TEUs) were shipped through Boston in the first eight months of the year. That number dropped to roughly 142,500 TEUs in the first eight months of 2021, and 99,000 through August of this year — numbers that reflect various supply chain disruptions largely brought about by the pandemic. Shipping traffic in Boston took a big hit last winter when Ocean Alliance temporarily suspended calls to Boston amid an East Coast traffic logjam for container ships.
But Massport officials are now confident that those numbers will rise. Year-over-year volume has already improved in July and August, when compared to the same months in 2021.
The largest ship to enter Boston Harbor’s Paul W. Conley Container Terminal arrived Thursday morning after originating in Asia, according to the Massachusetts Port Authority.
The China Ocean Shipping Company ship, which holds 13,500 “20-foot equivalent” containers, arrived around 7 a.m., according to Jennifer Mehigan, a Massport spokesperson.
The COSCO AWE6 shipping line, which the ship follows, serves China, Vietnam, Singapore, Abu Dhabi, and Greece before coming up the East Coast of the United States, Mehigan said.
1. 1200 ft long... wow.Largest ship ever to enter Boston terminal arrives from Asia, officials say - The Boston Globe
The largest ship to ever enter Boston Harbor’s Paul W. Conley Container Terminal arrived Thursday morning after originating in Asia, according to Massachusetts Port Authority.www.bostonglobe.com
Isn't most of the cargo FROM China?Should we be worried about our new ZPMC cranes? Or is just a little too paranoid?
WSJ News Exclusive | Pentagon Sees Giant Cargo Cranes as Possible Chinese Spying Tools
Chinese-made cranes at U.S. ports, including at several ports used by the military, could pose a security risk hiding in plain sight, officials say.www.wsj.com
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Every port uses container tracking software for logistics management. I am sure those systems are thoroughly hacked by now. You hardly need the cranes as information sources.From reading the WSJ article, it would seem the concern is outbound containers for the U.S. military The military has its own fleet of container ships.
I very much doubt DOD is shipping high value military equipment/supplies on a foreign flag vessel destined to a secret port somewhere. The containers being shipped would be loaded by these particular cranes, and the destination port would then be revealed to China.
Extreme paranoia. Though not as extreme as COVID vaccines carrying nanochips that the government would then use to track people.