A pair of German-owned 5,000-teu wide-beam boxships have been fixed at a significant premium to older designs, despite a continued decline in charter rates.
The 4,957-teu Jadrana (built 2014) has been taken at around $15,750 per day by Israeli liner operator Zim for 180 to 270 days.
The sistership Wieland (built 2014) has been fixed for 80 to 100 days with intra-Asian feeder operator TS Lines at $16,100 per day.
The rate is up to $4,000 per day more than that achieved by traditional panamax designs.
It compares with a rate of $12,250 per day that CMA CGM is reportedly paying to take the 4,130-teu Rio Cadiz (built 2008) for a longer period of 12 to 14 months.
Rate pressure
Rates for larger containership tonnage remain under pressure.
The 6,078-teu Brussels (built 2000) has been fixed for 10 to 12 months with Hapag-Lloyd at $14,800 per day, brokers said.
That is the same rate paid by the German charterer some weeks earlier to fix the 5,500-teu Genoa (built 2002) for a similar period.
Larger containerships are suffering due to service cuts by liner operators.
“Rates may slide further in the coming months, alongside further expected redeliveries,” said Clarkson Research Services.
Charterers are opting to charter vessels for flexible periods, reflecting uncertainty over longer-term deployment patterns, it said.
The surplus of tonnage has led to a drop in charter rates of around $1,000 per day over the past week for traditional panamax designs through to larger vessels up to 7,000 teu.
