Τaiwan’s Evergreen Marine Corporation and Shreyas Shipping & Logistics were among the ship owners which accounted for three boxship demolition sales last week, joining what appears to be the start of a recycling trend for container vessels.
Ship recycling is known to have an inverse relationship with the freight market—scrapping rises when freight demand weakens.
Few boxships were scrapped when freight rates were at record highs in the last two years, as operators continued trading elderly vessels to meet demand. Now that the liner party is over, owners are having to dispose of excess tonnage.
Sold on an “as is” basis in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, Evergreen’s 1998-built 1,164 TEU Uni-Ardent fetched US$3.58 million or US$505/ldt, while Shreyas’ 700 TEU SSL Chennai fetched US$2.26 million or US$560/ldt.
The 1989-built 760 TEU Venus C, owned by China’s Shanghai Xin Hai Shipping, fetched US$2.33 million or US$530/ldt. SSL Chennai and Venus C reportedly commanded a better price because they were built in Japan, while Uni-Ardent was built in Taiwan.
Singapore-based Star Asia Shipbroking alluded in its market report this week about concerns about a tonnage overhang as container markets continue to correct.
The shipbroker said, “A large number of container ships have recently been proposed for sale, and the deal should be completed within the next week. The prices paid in today’s market will be reflected in the sales of similar units.
“The next significant fear factor for the recycling markets is the sudden spur of ships, especially in the container and dry bulk segment.”
Greek broker Intermodal said in its report today that there are more vintage boxship candidates being offered for recycling.
Wan Hai Lines confirmed that early this month, it had invited interested cash buyers to submit bids to purchase 10 of its oldest vessels for demolition.
Martina Li
Asia Correspondent
