Chinese liner operator Goto Shipping International has reportedly expanded its fleet, with brokers reporting the company has acquired a pair of Navios vessels.
[s2If is_user_logged_in()]Goto operates services between China and Japan using an owned ship and several chartered vessels, and has been linked to the 2010-built 1,740TEU vessels, Acrux N and Vita N, from Navios Maritime Acquisition Corp.
The carrier reportedly paid US$9.5 million each for the vessels. When contacted, a manager at Goto declined to comment, saying that the company is always open to ship purchases if the price is right. The company’s only owned ship, the 2007-built 1,022TEU Acacia Virgo, was purchased in 2018.
Goto’s services, both solo and joint operations, cover the Chinese ports of Shanghai, Qingdao, Dalian, Lianyungang, Weihai, Tianjin and Yantai and the Japanese ports of Tokyo, Yokohama, Nagoya, Osaka, Kobe, Hakata and Moji.
The Acrux N and Vita N are among seven container ships that Navios Maritime Acquisition took over in 2020, from Navios Europe II, a private special purpose vehicle dissolved by three Navios group shareholders: Navios Holdings, Navios Acquisition, and sister company Navios Maritime Partners.
Navios Maritime Acquisition began the sale of all the vessels as the soaring container freight market catalysed demand for boxships.
The 2014-built 3,200TEU Allegro N has been sold to Danish tonnage provider Celsius Shipping for around US$14 million and renamed GH Pampero. Mediterranean Shipping Company purchased the 2007-built Castor N for US$9 million.
The other ships remaining in the fleet of the former Navios Europe II are the 2007-built 3,400TEU Solstice N, 2009-built 2,500TEU Spectrum N and the 2012-built 2,800TEU sister vessels Fleur N and Ete N.
Martina Li
Asia Correspondent[/s2If]
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