Norwegian sale-and-leaseback specialist Ocean Yield has bought a third methanol-fuelled container vessel delivering from South Korea next year.
The company, backed by US private equity giant KKR, said the 5,500-teu newbuilding is under construction at HJ Shipbuilding & Construction.
It is a sister to two dual-fuel post-panamaxes acquired earlier this year in separate deals from Germany’s MPC Capital, which ordered four of the units in October 2021.
Delivery is expected in the third quarter, when the boxship will start a seven-year time charter with New York-listed Israeli line Zim.
The purchase adds $80m to Ocean Yield’s Ebitda backlog.
No price has been revealed for the deal.
VesselsValue has assessed the new ships as worth $84m each.
Hamburg-based MPC Capital originally ordered the quartet at a reported cost of $260m combined.
The deal included two options and was HJ Shipbuilding’s first since 2014.
‘State-of-the-art’
The German owner described the ships as having “state-of-the-art” specifications allowing for a 40% reduction in fuel consumption compared with existing vessels.
Ocean Yield also splashed out in the summer on an order for two dual-fuel gas carriers in China.
It said the 36,000-cbm liquefied ethylene gas newbuildings will be built at Jiangsu Yangzi-Mitsui Shipbuilding for delivery in 2024 and 2025.
No price has been revealed, but the ships will be chartered by New York-listed petrochemical company Braskem for 15 years on a bareboat basis.
Ocean Yield said this transaction will add $245m to its Ebitda backlog.
