A super large container ship with a capacity of 24,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) was delivered by its builder Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding (Group) Co Ltd 12 days ahead of the original delivery date on Tuesday, according to a report by cs.com.cn, the official website of China Securities Journal.

Designed independently by Hudong-Zhonghua, the ship is 399.99 meters in length and 61.5 meters in width and will serve ocean routes from the far east to Europe.

The deck of the vessel covers 24,000 square meters, equivalent to 3.5 standard soccer pitches. The maximum number of container layers can reach 25, equivalent to the height of a 22-story building. The vessel is among the world's largest container ships with a capacity of 240,000 tons of cargo, the report said.

Hudong-Zhonghua has received a total of nine orders of 24,000 TEU ships, topping ship building companies in China. Along with the two that have been delivered, one more is expected to be delivered within the year.