Lamu Port Welcomes Record-Breaking 366-Meter Vessel

The Port of Lamu reached a new operational peak on Sunday evening after the successful docking of the MV Baltimore Express. This vessel is now officially the largest ship to ever call at any port within East and Central Africa.

Operated by the German shipping line Hapag-Lloyd, the ship measures 366 meters in length overall. It arrived from Oman’s Salalah Port, requiring the specific deep-water capabilities that the Lamu facility was designed to provide.

To illustrate the scale of the vessel, it spans the length of approximately three football pitches. While many regional ports struggle with ships of this magnitude, Lamu utilized its 400-meter quay length per berth to facilitate a smooth arrival.

Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) officials confirmed that the vessel handled restows of dangerous goods while at the terminal. These DGs (Dangerous Goods) were repositioned in strict compliance with International Maritime Organization (IMO) standard.

This arrival surpasses a previous record set only months ago. In August 2025, a sister vessel, the MV Nagoya Express, docked at the same port. That ship measured 335 meters, which was at the time a milestone for the region.

Captain Abdulaziz Mzee, the KPA General Manager for the Port of Lamu, noted that the arrival proves the facility can manage ultra-large vessels. He stated that this call elevates the status of the port on the global stage.

Mzee compared the technical capacity of the terminal to major international hubs like Singapore, Rotterdam, and Hamburg. He credited the natural harbor depth of 17.5 meters as the primary factor that sets Lamu apart from its neighbors.

This depth allows both Panamax and post-Panamax ships to navigate the channel with minimal dredging. Most other African ports require constant, expensive dredging to maintain the seabed depth necessary for mega-ships to remain competitive.

Because of this natural advantage, the port is being positioned as a strategic transshipment gateway. It is intended to serve as a hub capable of handling massive cargo volumes for the entire continent.

The port has handled over 120 vessels since the start of the year. KPA expects more calls in the coming weeks, as the facility continues to scale its operations and visibility within the global shipping industry.

To support this growth, KPA is investing in new hardware. The port is scheduled to receive additional cranes, terminal tractors, and specialized cargo handling equipment before the end of the year.

Beyond container traffic, the port is also managing vehicle imports. Captain Mzee confirmed that ninety motor vehicles out of a 5,000-unit batch discharged in March have already been evacuated from the site.

As global shipping companies continue to build larger vessels to achieve economies of scale, the Port of Lamu is marketed as a future-ready installation. It was built specifically to handle the next-generation of maritime logistics without the need for retrofitting.