Hapag-Lloyd has joined the crush of owners at shipyards looking to book space for container ship newbuildings, with a large enquiry for up to 30 vessels, which could be worth an estimated $5.4bn.
Brokers said the German liner owner and operator is seeking 10 vessels of between 15,000 teu and 16,000 teu and 10 of between 8,000 teu and 9,000 teu.
The company is also asking for options for five additional ships on each size range with the newbuilding enquiry being handled by one of the largest shipbrokers, the brokers said.
But Hapag-Lloyd is also said to be tapping yards for quotes on six firm ships, with four optional vessels in both sizes.
The company is said to have specified LNG dual-fuel propulsion systems for its vessels. One shipyard source said Hapag-Lloyd is also asking for offers on methanol dual-fuel alternatives.
Those following the business suggested that this might be a benchmarking exercise.
To date, Hapag-Lloyd has been a strong advocate for LNG as a fuel and has only explored methanol for retrofitting five 2014-built boxships in a $120m project with tonnage provider Seaspan Corp.
Newbuilding brokers price the larger LNG dual-fuel boxships at more than $220m apiece.
They cited French rival container ship owner CMA CGM, which signed a raft of nine 15,500-teu newbuildings to be built at HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries priced at $220m each. The ships are due for delivery in 2027 and 2028.
Newbuilding prices for the 8,000-teu to 9,000-teu ships are said to be around the $140m range, depending on specifications and propulsion options.
TradeWinds asked Hapag-Lloyd for confirmation and comment on the new business.
A spokesman said the company does not comment on market speculation.
He added: “We have not taken any decision about additional newbuilds. However, we are talking to shipyards as part of our day-to-day business and are constantly evaluating opportunities to modernise our fleet.”
Deluge
Container ship owners are flocking to shipyards in a fresh wave of enquiries.
But berth space is tight and prices are high.
Shipbroker Clarksons details that more than 140 container ship newbuildings have been ordered in the first seven months of this year, with prices on vessels in the sector up by about 28% since January.
The orderbook for the sector now stands at about 18% of the existing fleet, with just over 700 ships being built across all sizes.
This week, TradeWinds reported that the container ship sector is growing at its fastest pace in 15 years, with a shake-up at the top among the major 10 liner operators.
Different dynamics
At the beginning of July, Hapag-Lloyd chief executive Rolf Habben Jansen shrugged off market rumblings that the global container ship orderbook was starting to look “dangerously high”, adding that his company will need to order too, given the need to replace ageing ships and meet its sustainability goals.
Habben Jansen said market dynamics will be different by the time the next wave of vessels delivers in what is likely 2028 and 2029.
“We will also look at renewing our fleet, if anything, because we have some ships that need to be taken out of the fleet because they’re simply getting too old,” Habben Jansen said. “We also see that in some markets we will continue to upgrade services to ensure that they remain competitive.
“And we have to … keep sustainability in mind. So yes, we will continue to invest in some new ships.”
