MSC RHIANNON, now sailing as MSC RHIANNON II, is a geared feeder containership built in Poland in 2000 and operated in Mediterranean Shipping Company services. The vessel has spent a long career in European and Mediterranean container trades and has appeared repeatedly at Piraeus, including documented calls under the MSC RHIANNON name. She was renamed MSC RHIANNON II in June 2026, while retaining her IMO number, Liberian flag, MMSI and call sign.
The ship was constructed by Stocznia Gdynia S.A. at Gdynia, Poland, as yard number 8229/2. She measures 188.10 metres in length and 30 metres in beam and was designed with a nominal container capacity of approximately 2,078 TEU, including around 432 reefer plugs. Unlike many modern feeder containerships, she is geared, carrying three 45-tonne cranes, allowing cargo operations at terminals with limited shore equipment.
Propulsion is provided by a Sulzer 6RTA72U low-speed diesel engine developing approximately 17,940 kW, giving the vessel a historical service speed of around 21 knots. At more than 25 years of age, MSC RHIANNON II remains active in 2026 and continues to appear in MSC schedules in the Mediterranean and Eastern Mediterranean.
Vessel Details
Current Name: MSC RHIANNON II
Name at time of PiraeuShips recording: MSC RHIANNON
Former Names: WELLINGTON EXPRESS, CP TABASCO, TMM TABASCO, SILVIA
IMO: 9224051
MMSI: 636017023
Call Sign: D5IY4
Type: Geared Container Ship / Feeder
Flag: Liberia
Port of Registry: Monrovia
Built: 2000
Builder: Stocznia Gdynia S.A., Gdynia, Poland
Yard Number: 8229/2
Operator: Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC)
Length Overall: 188.10 m
Beam: 30.00 m
Depth: approx. 16.75 m
Maximum Draught: approx. 11.50 m
Gross Tonnage: 23,890 GT
Deadweight: approx. 29,840–32,106 t depending on database/current certification
Container Capacity: approx. 2,078 TEU
Reefer Capacity: approx. 432 plugs
Cargo Gear: 3 × 45 t cranes
Main Engine: Sulzer 6RTA72U
Main Engine Power: approx. 17,940 kW
Historical Service Speed: approx. 21 knots
History
The vessel entered service in 2000 as SILVIA. She subsequently became TMM TABASCO, followed by CP TABASCO, before taking the name WELLINGTON EXPRESS in 2006. Under that identity she operated for Hapag-Lloyd and sailed under the German flag.
In June 2015, she was renamed MSC RHIANNON and transferred to the Liberian flag for operation within the MSC network. The vessel kept that name for approximately eleven years. In June 2026, IMO 9224051 became MSC RHIANNON II, which is the name now shown by current AIS databases and MSC-related schedules.
Piraeus Connection
MSC RHIANNON has a documented history at Piraeus. The original PiraeuShips archive already contained the vessel in 2016, while independent photographic records also show her at Piraeus on 8 June 2021. This makes her more than a one-off visitor and places the vessel among the older MSC feeder containerships documented over several years in the port.
PiraeuShips Record
MSC RHIANNON was recorded at Piraeus by PiraeuShips during her long service under the MSC RHIANNON identity. The recording now has additional historical value, as the vessel was renamed MSC RHIANNON II in June 2026 while remaining active in Mediterranean container services. Her history from SILVIA and WELLINGTON EXPRESS to MSC RHIANNON and MSC RHIANNON II illustrates the long commercial life of a 2000-built European feeder containership.
Original video footage © PiraeuShips. All rights reserved.
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