MSC Mediterranean Shipping’s pruning of older tonnage from its fleet is providing Hong Kong Convention (HKC) compliant ship recyclers on the Indian subcontinent with some relief in a market that continues to see few ships being sold for scrap.
Both Wirana Shipping Corp and Star Asia Shipbroking have said in their latest market reports that Piraeus-based Niki Shipping has sold the 2,073-teu MSC Nicole (built 1989) for strict HKC-compliant recycling at Alang for $521 per ldt, or $7.27m.
The MSC Nicole has been part of the MSC fleet since it was acquired by the Swiss liner giant in 2000, although it was part of a clutch of container ships that were sold to Niki in 2021 and bareboat chartered back.
MSC and its vessel providers have sent at least five container ships for recycling at Alang this year, accepting a lower price for stringent green recycling than other shipowners who have elected to sell ships to non-HKC-certified yards on the Indian subcontinent.
United Arab Emirates-based Al Shamookh Construction Co, for example, was able to achieve $585 per ldt, or $5.6m when it sold its 45,300-dwt bulk carrier Jasmine II (built 1997) for recycling in Chattogram last week.
The Jasmine II is one of three older handymax bulkers owned by Al Shamook that have been deployed in the Middle East aggregates trade.
Hengan Steamship Co of Hong Kong managed to achieve an even higher $620 per ldt, or $7.32 for the 44,600-dwt bulker Hong Hao (built 1998).
The Hong Hao’s tenure with Hengan has been brief. The company bought the ship from China’s Hongyuan Marine for an undisclosed price only in March.
Brokers familiar with the ship did not actively trade while under Hengan ownership. The company was formed at the end of 2022, and brokers believe acquired the ship purely to make an asset play in the demolition market.
Ship-hungry Bangladeshi recyclers have this year consistently outbid their Indian competition in the smaller size ranges, paying for vessels in cash due to the country’s ongoing problems with letters of credit.
With a lack of bigger ships coming onto the demolitions markets, HKC-compliant Indian recycling facilities have relied on tonnage from owners seeking green recycling for their unwanted ships.
