MV Pacific Virtue makes maiden South African call at Richards Bay, discharges 7,969.74 tonnes of project cargo

The 199.90m general dry cargo vessel sailed directly from Zhoushan, China, to South Africa after being delivered by China Merchants Jinling Shipyard. Richards Bay was its first official port call since leaving the shipyard.

Acting Richards Bay port manager Winnie Mpanza said the vessel's maiden call reflected confidence in South Africa's port system and highlighted the port's handling of specialised project cargo.

“We are immensely proud that the MV Pacific Virtue made the Port of Richards Bay its first port of call in South Africa on its inaugural journey.

"This maiden call reflects the confidence placed in the country’s port system by international shipping operators and demonstrates our maritime capabilities to safely and efficiently handle specialised project cargo.”

The vessel was handled at Berth 708, where it discharged 7,969.74 tonnes of specialised project cargo, including large wind turbine blades, turbines, towers and containers.

The operation involved coordination between the vessel, marine operations and cargo-handling teams to discharge the equipment safely.