The deployment of super-sized boxships to South American and some additional Asian ports has sparked concern at a time when freight rates have collapsed.
On Monday, the 16,000-teu CMA CGM Alexander Von Humboldt (built 2013) set a new record as the largest vessel to call in Indonesia.
The vessel is one of three neopanamax (NPX) boxships scheduled to call the PT Jakarta International Container Terminal (JICT) terminal.
The vessels will be deployed on CMA CGM Columbus JAX service between Indonesia and the United States.
That puts the vessels on a trade where freight rates have plunged.
Spot rates from China to the US East Coast have halved in the past four months to $5,318 per forty foot container (feu), according to the Shanghai Containerised Freight Index (SCFI).
Records shattered
Container ships being deployed on the trades to and from South America are also breaking records for their increased capacity.
The 13,278-teu Rio de Janeiro Express (built 2022) this week set a new size record for container ships on the East Coast of South America, according to Alphaliner.
Operated by German liner operator Hapag-Lloyd, the vessel docked at the Brasil Terminal Portuario (BTP) in Santos on 25 October.
Another record was achieved at Tecon Santos container terminal when the 11,040 teu CMA CGM Vela (built 2008) called at the terminal, the analyst adds.
“With a length of 347m the vessel became the longest container ship ever to call on the South American East Coast, manifesting the general size increase of ships that serve this region,” said Alphaliner.
The introduction of larger vessels comes as freight rates to South America are under pressure.
Spot rates from Shanghai to South America (Santos) have halved in the past two months.
Rates were down to $4,541 per teu on 28 October from $9,200 per teu in August, according to the SCFI.
Zim pipeline
The downward pressure on rates comes as some liner operators prepare to take delivery of their largest vessels to date.
On 21 October, Regional Container Lines (RCL) of Thailand inaugurated the naming of what will be two of the largest container ships in its fleet.
The 11,860-teu Santi Bhum (built 2022) and Thanya Bhum were ordered from Imabari Shipbuilding in Japan at the Hiroshima Shipyard.
The vessels, costing $115m each, will be chartered to Israeli liner operator Zim for five years.
The first vessel, which will operate as the Zim Thailand, is set to be introduced into a transpacific service calling the US East Coast from early November.
The second vessel, Zim Bangkok, is set for delivery early next year.
Zim is also preparing to take delivery of the first of ten LNG-dual fuel sisters it will charter from leading tonnage provider Seaspan Corp.
South Korean builder Samsung Heavy Industries recently floated out the first in the series, the 15,000-teu Zim Sammy Ofer. The vessel is slated for delivery to Seaspan from the South Korean yard in March 2023.
Zim will operate the vessels in the transpacific in place of smaller ships, where rates have fallen the most.
Spot rates on the trade from China to the US West Coast are down to $1,902 per feu, down from over $8,000 per feu in June.
