Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) is on a second-hand ship buying spree, now above 207, reports Alphaliner. MSC’s endless appetite for second-hand container tonnage has seen the Geneva-based line reach a staggering 207 ships purchased in the last twenty-two months, with the latest round of acquisitions bringing the tally to 207 ships, according to Alphaliner.
MSC reached the procurement threshold of 100 ships in August 2021.
Among the new purchases made by MSC are five container ships of more than 8,000 teu controlled by US investment management firm Seamax Capital Management, according to market sources.
The report notifies that the ships believed to have been bought by MSC are the SEA-MAX FAIRFIELD of 9,038 teu built in 2006 and the SEAMAX GREENWICH (Hyundai 8000) of 8,690 teu built in 2004, as well as three units of 8,300-8,400 teu, the SEAMAX built in 2003-2005. BRIDGEPORT, SEAMAX DARIEN and SEAMAX NEW HAVEN (Samsung 8000).
All five ships are already chartered by the world’s largest line, with contracts ending in 2024-2025 at charter rates ranging from $31,000 to $42,000 per day. The exact price of the sale has not been confirmed, although it could take into account existing charter contracts (or parts thereof) adds Alphaliner.
In addition to this it reports that MSC has also become the buyer of the 5,042 teu FELIXSTOWE BRIDGE (Hyundai 5000) built in 2005 and the 4,800 teu SINO BRIDGE (KL 4800) built in 2004, both controlled by Sinokor. The carrier also recently added the 1,118 teu A MIZUHO (CV 1100) purchased from China-controlled Dalian Zhida Ship Management.
According to Alphaliner, the 207 vessels acquired by MSC represent a total capacity of around 785,000 teu, almost the size of a carrier like South Korea’s HMM, which is currently ranked number eight in Alphaliner’s TOP 100 with a capacity of 818,000. you. MSC embarked on an unprecedented second-hand tonnage acquisition spree in August 2020, initially taking advantage of low asset prices.
Alphaliner claims that MSC continued to buy ships to beat increasingly expensive charter rates, as part of a bold move to insulate itself from the charter market and reinvest its massive trading profits. He says this buying spree is unique in container shipping history and could well continue in the coming months, despite weaker sentiment in global container markets.
