The ONE liner shipping company is about to order a further 10 newbuildings in China. Methanol apparently remains the fuel of choice.
Methanol has so far been highly touted as an alternative fuel in the shipping industry for phasing out fossil fuels. However, Maersk, a pioneer in this segment, has just completed half a turnaround by chartering in LNG ships on a large scale.
By contrast, ONE, still an alliance partner of Hapag-Lloyd and the No. 6 in global container shipping, apparently continues to believe that methanol will prevail and be available in sufficient quantities.
According to market reports, the carrier led by Jeremy Nixon in Singapore intends to order further newbuildings in the mid-size segment. As yet, unconfirmed market reports state that ten 13,000 TEU freighters are to be ordered.
Methanol and more on the ONE newbuildings
According to the report, ONE intends to order the newbuildings from the two Chinese shipyards, Jiangsu Yangzijiang and Jiangnan Shipbuilding – at a rumoured unit price of US$166m. The total value of the order would, therefore, be around US$1.6bn. The shipping company had already ordered eleven of these ships from the same shipyards in January.
In addition to the methanol-capable engines, other emission-saving technologies are to be installed, according to market insiders. There is talk of an optimised hull shape, waste heat recovery systems, air bubble lubrication, shaft generators and windshields on the bow.
