News / Box ship orderbook grows fatter, with Evergreen and SITC needing more capacity

Credit Kees Tom.

The global containership orderbook continues to expand: on Friday, both Taiwanese liner operator Evergreen and Chinese intra-Asia carrier SITC ordered more newbuildings.

Evergreen returned to Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding for two 24,000 teu ships to be delivered late 2023-early 2024, while SITC exercised options for two 1,023 teu vessels at Dae Sun Shipbuilding & Engineering.

The Evergreen newbuilding price was not disclosed, but a similar type is now valued at $180m.

Hudong-Zhonghua won orders for four 23,000 teu ships from Evergreen in November 2019, parent China State Shipbuilding Corporation said this showed major liner operators had endorsed the shipbuilder’s design and construction of ultra-large containerships. It has also delivered four 2,500 teu ships Evergreen ordered in 2018.

Evergreen now expects delivery of 34 new vessels between 2021 and 2026. They include 20, 15,000 teu and five 23,000 teu ships from Samsung Heavy Industries, two 1,800 teu ships from Hyundai Mipo Dockyard, three 23,000 teu ships from Jiangnan Shipyard and two 23,000 teu ships from Hudong-Zhonghua, Its current orderbook stands at over 600,000 teu.

Now the seventh-largest liner operator, Evergreen boasts a fleet of over 1.35 million teu, comprising 113 owned ships and 88 chartered vessels.

Hong Kong-listed SITC International, parent of SITC Container Lines, said its subsidiary, SITC Shipowning, exercised options for two 1,023 teu ships at Dae Sun  on the final day it was able formalise the order. The options were tied to orders made for eight similar ships at the South Korean shipyard on 27 May, each priced at $19.2m. The first eight ships are scheduled for delivery in 2023, while the additional vessels will be delivered in February and April 2024.

SITC now has 30 ships on order, including 20 under construction at Yangzijiang Shipbuilding.

The global containership orderbook is now over 18% of the active fleet, as sky-high freight rates prompt liner operators and tonnage providers to invest in newbuildings.