Hambantota International Port (HIP) has recorded one of its highest single-vessel throughput figures, handling 13,260 TEUs during the call of container ship MSC Marie Leslie, the port operator said on April 23.
A total of 7,968 containers were moved during the vessel’s berth between April 11 and 15, surpassing earlier records of 12,957 TEUs on MSC Ilenia and 11,369 TEUs on MSC Ruby recorded in March 2026.
“This achievement reflects the coordination, discipline and capability of our teams across all functions,” Tommy Yang, Chief Operating Officer of the Hambantota International Port Group (HIPG), said in a statement quoted by EconomyNext.
The Mediterranean Shipping Company-owned vessel’s call comes as HIP steadily gains prominence in regional logistics, with global shippers seeking alternative transshipment hubs amid the continuing conflict in West Asia. Disruption to Red Sea and Strait of Hormuz routes has pushed carriers to reassess scheduling and stopover patterns across the Indian Ocean.
The milestone adds to a string of high-volume calls at the southern port this year and underscores the operator’s push to market the facility as a deep-water complement to Colombo, Sri Lanka’s principal container hub. HIPG is a joint venture between Sri Lanka Ports Authority and China Merchants Port Holdings Company, which took over commercial operations under the 2017 concession.
No throughput breakdown was provided for import, export or transshipment movement on the Marie Leslie call.
