Maersk Line has snapped up six modern boxships from Commerzbank in a deal worth up to $280m.
The Danish giant acquired two 13,000-teu neo-panamaxes and four 4,500-teu wide-beam vessels from the German financier, which continues to scale down its shipping portfolio.
Some broking sources suggest the deal is worth less than given, despite big differences in estimated valuations of the neo-panamax vessels.
The two larger ships are the 13,102-teu sisters Maersk Edirne and Maersk Eureka (both built 2012), which formerly traded for Hanjin Shipping as Hanjin Asia and Hanjin Sooho, and are estimated to have been sold for around $85m each.
That is significantly more than the $58m which VesselsValue suggests they may be worth, but far less than the $130m the three Isle of Man-registered sisterships managed by Peter Dohle Schiffahrts were sold for by HSH Nordbank in December 2016.
Alphaliner lists nine identical vessels in the series, which were built in 2012-2013 for Hanjin by Hyundai Heavy Industries. It says Maersk Line has had the pair on charter since 2017, and it deployed 17 units of the same Hyundai design on charter from non-operating owners.
The baby wide-beam ships involved in the deal include the 4,957-teu HS Baffin and HS Shackleton (both built 2013), which have a combined value of $60m to $64m, according to estimates by VesselsValue and Maritime Strategies International.
Long-term charters
The Chinese-built duo belong to a series of 11 vessels of the design, and are on long-term charters with Gold Star Line and Hapag-Lloyd, Alphaliner says. They formerly belonged to the fleet of Hansa Treuhand but have been managed by Liberty Blue in Bremen, northern Germany, in recent months.
The last two ships in the deal are the 4,622-teu Merkur Harbour and Merkur Planet (both built 2012), which are respectively valued in the range of $40m to $47.5m. These already trade on charter to Maersk Line and are managed by FA Vinnen in Bremen.
Alphaliner describes the two gearless vessels as near sisters to the 22 geared ships optimised for the West Africa trades that Maersk Line already owns.
Commerzbank would not comment on the deal, but was among the first of the German banks to scale down its exposure in shipping. It said its asset and capital recovery ship finance portfolio stood at €2.6bn ($3.21bn) at the end of last year, after it shed €2.2bn of shipping loans in 2017.
Maersk Line has picked up the tonnage at a time when charter rates and asset values are rising.
“We are continuously reviewing our fleet composition to ensure it meets our operational needs and supports our strategy of growing with the market. We invest in existing ships in the market, but also explore opportunities for chartered ships and newbuildings,” a spokesperson said.
