MAERSK SEALAND ORDERS ANOTHER 4 “S-CLASS” BOXSHIPS

MAERSK SEALAND ORDERS ANOTHER 4 “S-CLASS” BOXSHIPS

MAERSK SEALAND ORDERS ANOTHER 4 “S-CLASS” BOXSHIPS

   Maersk Sealand has ordered another four big “S-class” containerships from the Odense shipyard in Denmark, extending to 25 the series of vessels of more than 6,000 TEUs that started with the “Regina Maersk” in 1996.

   The next batch of four 6,600-TEU vessels will be delivered in 2002.

   According to industry sources, the actual capacity of the big “S-class” ships is 7,100 TEUs, rather than the 6,600-TEU intake declared by Maersk Sealand.

   The ships were ordered “a long time ago” from the Odense shipyard, a sister company of Maersk Sealand within the A.P. Moller group, but the orders had not been publicized, said a spokesman for Maersk Sealand.

   Since 1996, Maersk Sealand has built and taken delivery of six 6,000-TEU ships and 14 vessels of 6,600-TEU, at a pace of about four new ships of this size a year. A 15th 6,600-TEU ship, currently being built by the Odense shipyard, will be delivered in early February.

   All the big vessels are employed by Maersk Sealand in its TP5/AE5, AE1 and AE2 Asia/Europe and transpacific container services, according to the ComPairData global liner shipping database at http://www.compairdata.com .