The world's three largest liner shipping companies are leading a fresh raid on the secondhand boxship market.
Maersk, Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC), and CMA CGM have snared ships they have on charter from Greek, German and Asian tonnage providers.
Danish carrier Maersk has picked up two 3,800-teu vessels for an en-bloc price of $109m, according to European brokers.
The high-reefer vessels belong to a series of six vessels acquired earlier this year by clients of Greece's Capital Executive Ship Management.
They operate on charters to Maersk, which is expected to take ownership of two vessels later this year, brokers said.
Neither Capital nor Maersk could be reached for comment amid speculation that the charters will be dissolved or the vessels sold against a discount on the charter.
But the deal points to a significant profit for interests linked to Evangelos Marinakis' Capital that purchased the ships several months ago.
The Greek owner acquired the 3,800-teu Spirit of Auckland (built 2007) and five sisters from the German market in February.
Since then, their value has quadrupled from about $15m per vessel to close to $60m each, according to VesselsValue.
CMA CGM keeps pace
CMA CGM remains active and has bought the latest in a string of small and medium-sized containerships being hived off by UK-based Lomar Shipping.
The French carrier is paying about $43m for the 3,534-teu Cartagena Trader (built 2008), which operates on charter in the intra-Med services, brokers said.
That is a massive mark-up for Lomar, which acquired the vessel in 2014 for a reported $15m.
The Cartagena Trader is the 36th secondhand acquisition by CMA CGM — the third largest liner operator — in 12 months, according to Alphaliner.
The company has stepped up its buying activity and last month acquired four feeder vessels from Oslo-listed MPC Container Ships (MPCC).
That makes the French carrier the second most active buyer of secondhand boxships.
The undisputed leader in the sale-and-purchase sector remains liner giant MSC.
The Geneva-based company is estimated to have acquired 120 boxships in the secondhand market since launching an unprecedented spree in August 2020, Alphaliner estimates.
The spree includes three recently acquired feeder containerships.
MSC has purchased the 2,450-teu Tanto Nusantara (built 2003) from Tanto Intim Line of Indonesia for an undisclosed price, the analyst said.
The carrier has also purchased the 1,118-teu JSP Levante (built 2006) from Germany's Jebsen Shipping Partners and the Jens & Waller-owned 956-teu Elke (built 2005).
The two vessels have already been renamed MSC Levante F and MSC Elke F, respectively.
Last Songa jigsaw
Other notable sales include the last vessel from the former fleet of tonnage provider Songa Container.
The 1,794-teu FS Ipanema (built 2009) is being sold to a European buyer with a three-year charter to US operator King Ocean Services through to 2024, according to European brokers.
The vessel was not part of the en-bloc sale to MPCC, which acquired 11 feeder containerships from the Norwegian-listed company in the summer.
