According to research conducted by London-based Clarksons, which covered the period up to the end of June, newbuild prices for small 1,700 and 2,750 TEU container ships were among the fastest rising of all types of vessel.

The broker’s data revealed that prices of US$25.5M for a 1,750 TEU unit and US$32.5M for the larger 2,750 TEU class of ship were 15% and 17% higher, respectively, than a year earlier.

Research undertaken by the Singapore-headquartered maritime consultant and research group Alphaliner indicated a similar trend. It attributed the growing interest by owners/operators in this sector of the container ship market to the general ageing of the fleet, and the need to replace, modernise and phase-in tonnage with greater levels of operational efficiency.

Alphaliner thinks more stringent bunker requirements are having an impact on investment decisions. A company analyst said: “Higher-spec eco-tonnage is specifically needed in the context of ever more stringent environmental regulations, such as the introduction of the 2020 sulphur cap.”

Fundamentally, the demand for feeder ships should pick up as mainline operators further streamline their range of direct port calls, and increasingly rely on extended hub and spoke networks.

Several lines are known to be evaluating orders for feeder class ships with the Taiwanese carriers Evergreen Line, Yang Ming and intra-Asia specialist Wan Hai Lines particularly active. They are understood to be considering ships of 2,700, 2,400 and 1,800 TEU, respectively, with potentially 50 ships being contracted.

Those companies that have a sizeable number of feeder class ships on order include Bangkok-headquartered Regional Container Lines, Taipei-based TS Lines, Hong Konglisted SITC and China’s Antong Holdings group.

Read this item in full
This complete item is approximately 500 words in length, and appeared in the August 2018 issue of WorldCargo News, on page 9. To access this issue download the PDF here.