Lloyd’s Register is to class Seaspan’s new series of 9,200 TEU container ships, to be built at Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) in Korea. Seaspan has ordered four vessels, with an option for a further four. The first ship in the series will be the largest container ship ever constructed in the world. Seaspan was also the first container ship operator to break the 8,000 TEU barrier, ordering five vessels of 8,100 TEU earlier this year, also classed by Lloyd’s Register and currently being built at SHI.

Rob Tustin, Principal Ship Surveyor and Manager of Lloyd’s Register Asia’s Korea Plan Approval Services in Pusan, says: "Seaspan, in co-operation with China Shipping Group, has shown itself to be at the forefront of the current push towards ever larger post-panamax vessels and the economies of scale they can bring, and we are delighted to be involved in this innovative and ground-breaking project. Seaspan Ship Management Vice-President Peter Curtis, who is responsible for ship specification development, says: "The close co-operation developed during the plan approval phase of the 8,100 TEU vessels, along with a deep mutual understanding and the agreement to analyse aspects pertinent to large container ships which present greater risks than for smaller ships, were the cementing factor in the appointment of Lloyd’s Register."