News / 2025 will be a record year for containership newbuilding orders

Photo: Dreamstime.com

With just three weeks before the year ends, orders for newbuild box ships this year looks set to be a new record – the 4.84m teu contracted  surpassing last year’s by almost 100,000 teu.

MSC has finalised an unreported order for two 21,700 teu vessels at Penglai Zhongbai Jinglu Ship Industry, bringing the total ordered of this design to 31, split between Zhongbai and three other Chinese shipyards – Shanghai Waigaoqiao, Zhoushan Changhong and Jiangsu Hantong.

The Swiss-Italian carrier continues to build its capacity lead over competitors, and its orders have enabled Zhongbai to diversify into mega-containerships – the largest previously built being 3,000 teu. It contracted eight 11,500 teu ships at Zhongbai last year, for delivery in 2027-2029.

Meanwhile, Alphaliner reported this week that Idan Ofer’s Eastern Pacific Shipping (EPS) had commissioned four conventionally fuelled 6,000 teu vessels from China’s Wuhu Shipyard, on the back of a long-term charter to CMA CGM, estimated at $79m each.

Last week, The Loadstar reported how EPS had ordered four 6,000 teu ships from Hengli Heavy Industry, adding to five similar orders at China Merchants Jinling Nanjing Shipyard, all for delivery in 2027 and 2028. CMA CGM has also been identified as the charterer of these newbuilds.

Chinese shipbuilder Wuhu Xinlian, known more for tankers, has won orders for a 1,700 teu pair and a 400 teu pair from Chinese owners Anhui Wanbang and Shanghai Yujiang. Delivery is expected in 2028.

Linerlytica said containership orders in 2025 to date had exceeded the previous record of 4.75m teu, reached in both 2021 and 2024.

MB Shipbrokers said it saw continued strong appetite from buyers to secure the few remaining newbuilding slots in 2028, with many deliveries being pushed into 2029.

“We note that price levels generally remain unchanged, with shipyards, however, managing to sell slots from end-2028 through to the first half 2029, at prices similar to projects recently concluded, on the basis of earlier deliveries,” the Danish brokerage said.

“The smaller feeder segment also saw strong underlying demand this week, and hence we expect a busy few weeks ahead,” it added.