Emirates Shipping Line
Container Tracking
Emirates Shipping Line runs a Dubai and Hong Kong dual-hub operation, and the prefix most often credited to it belongs to an Ethiopian carrier. Enter a container, bill of lading or booking number for the latest milestones.
What a Emirates Shipping Line tracking number looks like
The lookup above accepts any of these in the same field. If one returns nothing, try another. Carriers release milestone data against different identifiers at different stages.
Container number
4 letters + 7 digits (11 characters)
ESPU1234567Standard ISO 6346. ESPU is the only prefix registered to Emirates Shipping Line, so a large share of its boxes are leased and carry another code.
Bill of lading number
Alphanumeric, no publicly documented format
ESLDXB123456Emirates Shipping Line publishes no specification. Enter the number exactly as printed on your document.
Booking number
Alphanumeric
12345678Accepted in the same field as container and B/L numbers.
Emirates Shipping Line container prefixes
These owner codes are registered to Emirates Shipping Line FZE in the BIC ISO 6346 register. Containers moving under a Emirates Shipping Line booking may also carry a leasing company's prefix. A leased box is still your shipment, the prefix just does not identify the carrier.
How to track a Emirates Shipping Line shipment
- 1
Find your container or BL number
It is printed on your bill of lading, your booking confirmation, or on the container door itself. Any of the three works in the search box above.
- 2
Emirates Shipping Line is already selected
Because you are on the Emirates Shipping Line page, the carrier dropdown is filled in for you. If you actually need a different line, change it. The selection is not locked.
- 3
Enter the number and press Track
Type it exactly as printed. Spaces and dashes are fine, but a mistyped letter will return nothing, since the check digit at the end only validates against the correct serial.
- 4
Read the milestone timeline
You will see terminal and vessel events from origin gate-in through to empty return, plus the vessel and voyage your box is actually on.
You can also check Emirates Shipping Line's own portal directly at Emirates Shipping Line cargo tracking . The advantage of tracking here is keeping several carriers on one screen instead of one portal per line.
About Emirates Shipping Line
Emirates Shipping Line was founded in 2006 and operates from a dual base in Dubai and Hong Kong, a structure visible in the container register, where the owner of the ESPU prefix is recorded as Emirates Shipping (Hong Kong) Ltd rather than the UAE entity. Alphaliner puts the fleet at 22 vessels and 98,114 TEU as of April 2026.
Its network concentrates on Asia–Middle East trades, the Indian subcontinent and the Red Sea, which makes it directly relevant to Pakistani importers and exporters in a way that most similarly sized carriers are not. On several of those port pairs it offers a direct service where a global line would route you through a hub.
One point of confusion worth clearing up immediately: this carrier has nothing to do with Emirates SkyCargo. They share a name and a home city. One is an ocean container line founded in 2006; the other is the freight division of an airline founded in 1985.
Emirates Shipping Line tracking: what to check first
ESLU is a different carrier entirely. It belongs to Ethiopian Shipping & Logistics Services Enterprise in Addis Ababa. A major tracking site lists ESLU as Emirates Shipping Line, and the four-letter similarity makes it an easy mistake to accept. The correct prefix is ESPU.
You are not looking for Emirates SkyCargo. If your document shows an eleven-digit number formatted as three digits, a dash and eight more, you are holding an air waybill, not an ocean bill of lading, and that is the airline, not this carrier.
Most boxes are leased. With one registered prefix, Emirates Shipping Line owns comparatively few containers. A Triton, CAI or Seaco code on your booking is normal.
The name differs between systems. Our carrier list shows this line as “Emirates Line”, while its documentation says Emirates Shipping Line. The dropdown above resolves that for you automatically, but it is worth knowing if you are cross-checking against another system.
What each Emirates Shipping Line tracking status means
Ocean carriers share the same terminal and vessel event vocabulary, so these milestones read the same whichever line you are tracking.
Gate in
The container passed through the terminal gate at the origin port and is now in the terminal's custody, waiting to be loaded.
Loaded on vessel
The box was lifted onto the ship. This is the milestone that fixes your shipment to a specific vessel and voyage number.
Vessel departure
The ship has sailed from the origin port. Transit time is measured from here, and it is the point most ETA calculations are anchored to.
Transshipment
The container was discharged at an intermediate hub and will be reloaded onto a second vessel. Most delays originate here rather than at origin.
Discharged
The container came off the ship at the destination port. Free time and demurrage clocks typically start from this event.
Gate out
The container left the terminal on a truck or rail wagon. Once this fires, the terminal's storage charges stop and the haulier's clock starts.
Empty return
The unpacked container was returned to the carrier's nominated depot. This closes the shipment and stops any per-diem detention charges.
Where Emirates Shipping Line shipments usually move
Emirates Shipping Line tracking questions
Is ESLU an Emirates Shipping Line prefix?
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No. ESLU is registered to Ethiopian Shipping & Logistics Services Enterprise in Addis Ababa, a completely different carrier on a different continent. It is listed as Emirates Shipping Line by at least one large tracking site. The real Emirates Shipping Line prefix is ESPU.
Which container prefix does Emirates Shipping Line use?
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ESPU, and only ESPU. Interestingly, the BIC registrant is Emirates Shipping (Hong Kong) Ltd rather than the Dubai entity, which reflects the carrier's dual-hub structure. Most containers on its bookings are leased and carry a lessor's code.
Why is the carrier called "Emirates Line" in the dropdown?
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That is the label our carrier system uses for Emirates Shipping Line. It is the same carrier. The dropdown above is pre-selected correctly for you, so you do not need to translate between the two names.
Is Emirates Shipping Line connected to Emirates SkyCargo?
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No. Emirates Shipping Line is an ocean container carrier founded in 2006. Emirates SkyCargo is the air freight division of the airline Emirates. They share a name and a home city and nothing else: different companies, different modes, different tracking systems.
How large is Emirates Shipping Line?
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22 vessels and 98,114 TEU as of April 2026, per Alphaliner. That places it firmly in the regional operator category, focused on Asia–Middle East and subcontinent trades rather than the deep-sea lanes.
What is Emirates Shipping Line's SCAC code?
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ESPU is the value that appears consistently across published ocean-carrier SCAC lists. NMFTA's own register is paywalled so we cannot source-verify it, but it is well corroborated.
Does Maalbardaar charge for Emirates Shipping Line tracking?
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No. Tracking is included with a free Maalbardaar account, which also lets you keep shipments across several carriers on one dashboard instead of checking each carrier's portal separately.
Every carrier on one dashboard.
Stop checking Emirates Shipping Line's portal separately from everyone else's. Track your whole book of shipments in one place.
Not shipping with Emirates Shipping Line?
Track any of these lines from the same dashboard, or use the general tracking page if your carrier is not listed.
Ocean carriers
Air cargo
Maalbardaar is an independent logistics technology platform and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Emirates Shipping Line FZE. "Emirates Shipping Line" and all related marks are trademarks of their respective owners and are used here for identification purposes only. For official information, visit the carrier's own website . Carrier data sources: ESPU confirmed against the BIC ISO 6346 register, where the registrant is Emirates Shipping (Hong Kong) Ltd. ESLU is deliberately excluded: the register shows it belongs to Ethiopian Shipping & Logistics Services Enterprise in Addis Ababa. Fleet of 22 vessels and 98,114 TEU per Alphaliner, April 2026. SCAC cross-corroborated across published lists but not source-verified.