The German state-owned KfW Ipex-Bank has a new shipping company client and is providing financing in the double-digit million range for a series of newbuilds for the Finnish shortsea shipping company Langh Ship.
The project involves two “environmentally friendly container ship newbuildings” with 1,200 TEU, KfW Ipex-Bank has now announced.
35 million will be made available to the Finnish shipping company Langh Ship. The new feeder ships – the first newbuilding “Ingrid” was recently delivered by the Chinese shipyard and placed in a Borchard charter – are reportedly equipped with energy-efficient two-stroke main engines from MAN, which enable optimized fuel consumption. In addition, Langh Ships’ sister company Langh Tech is providing a range of green tech solutions, such as hybrid scrubbers and a ballast water management system (BWMS).
“A technical highlight of the ships is the preparation of the exhaust gas purification system for the installation of a carbon capture system based on the concept of the circular economy,” says the bank’s statement.
The system was developed by Langh Tech and filters CO₂ directly from the exhaust gas stream, which should reduce the ships’ CO₂ emissions by 20 to 50%. The captured CO₂ is then chemically bound as sodium carbonate, which can be used in a variety of other industrial applications.
“We are very pleased to have won Langh Ship as a new customer,” says Andreas Ufer, Member of the Management Board of KfW Ipex-Bank. “With this financing we underline our commitment to support innovative ships that advance the decarbonization of European shipping.”
The feeder project is one of two measures on the Langh fleet. The shipping company is also active in the shortsea/MM market and has recently completed a series of newbuildings. The “Ingrid” is the first vessel in a series of three 1200 TEU container feeder vessels for Langh Ship. The vessel is reportedly optimized for the transport of 45-foot containers both in the holds and on deck. The design was developed by Langh Ship in collaboration with the Shanghai Merchant Ship Design & Research Institute (SDARI).
The hatch covers are described as “an innovative and unique feature”. On board the “Ingrid”, they can be opened in three sections across the entire width of the ship. “This allows better access to the holds, even if the entire hold is not being unloaded on deck. This is a first for container feeders,” say the Finns.
As a promotional bank, KfW IPEX-Bank is also a very important player for German shipyards, for example with its export credit financing. It is also active in ship financing.
