Tonnage provider Ernst Russ Group has sold another one of its smaller container ships.
The 868-teu feeder ship Moveon (built 2001) was sold for an undisclosed price.
The transaction was completed with the handover of the vessel in Piraeus, Greece.
It is the second Sietas type 168 vessel sold by German owners this month.
Reederei Drevin purchased the 862-teu Avera (built 2003) from Schiffahrtskontor tom Worden for a reported $4m.
The vessel, renamed Lars D, is expected to join a charter with Netherlands-based Cuba trade specialist Nirint Lines.
The Moveon has been operated by Ernst Russ as a joint venture after it was purchased eight years ago. In recent months, it has operated on a charter with Admiral Container Lines in the intra-Med services.
Formerly the Anna Sophie Dede, it was one of a batch of container ships sold in 2016 by the then-HSH Nordbank.
Fifty-two of the popular Sietas type 168 series were built between 2001 and 2008, according to Alphaliner.
Four in that series were sold to Ernst Russ and its principal sponsor and shareholder Peter Dohle Schiffahrts: the Moveon and sister ships Trouper (built 2005), Visitor (built 2004) and Andante (built 2007).
Two of those vessels remain in the Ernst Russ fleet. The third is operated by the Dohle Group.
Down to 29
The sale leaves Ernst Russ with a fleet of 29 vessels. Most are container ships between 700 teu and 4,200 teu, although the company has been expanding into larger sizes.
Last year, it bought the 13,371-teu Rome Express (built 2010) from Denmark’s Navigare Capital Partners.
It also sold two 20-year-old feeder vessels.
The company bought the 2,194-teu Frida Russ (built 2017), while the 1,025-teu Bakkafoss (built 2009) is owned in partnership with Eimskip of Iceland.
Ernst Russ will reveal its latest quarterly financial results on 27 May.
It expects earnings and revenues to dip this year as the container market normalises from its pandemic-era boom.
