MSC Expands Fleet with Additional Secondhand Ship Purchases

Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC) continues to solidify its position as the world’s leading liner company with the acquisition of more secondhand vessels, bringing the Swiss-based carrier's total ship purchases over the last four years to nearly 400.

The shipping giant has recently been linked to the acquisition of two ships from German owners, adding to its remarkable four-year spree of secondhand boxship buys, now totaling an impressive 383 vessels.

According to Alphaliner, which predicts that MSC’s market share will soon equal that of Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd combined with the launch of the Gemini Cooperation early next year, the company has acquired the 1,440 TEU Cape Flint (built in 2006) from Germany’s Schoeller Group and the 2,526 TEU Jan Ritscher (built in 1999) from Reederei Gerd Ritscher.

Though no official prices for the two ships have been disclosed, VesselsValue, an online pricing platform, estimates their combined value at just over $25 million. The ships are expected to be renamed MSC Manasvi II and MSC Shivalika III, respectively.

MSC has been actively purchasing mid-sized secondhand vessels throughout the year, but it has also been involved in the newbuilding market. Last month, it was reported that MSC had reached out to lesser-known Chinese shipyards for its next batch of newbuilds. In July, the company acquired two 14,000 TEU ships under construction at Jiangnan Shipyard from BAL Container Line in a deal valued at more than $330 million.

Under the leadership of Soren Toft, MSC’s fleet now exceeds 6 million TEU, giving the company control of 20% of the global operated container fleet. Additionally, MSC’s substantial orderbook, which currently consists of around 130 ships, is expected to add another 1.8 million TEU of capacity in the coming years, according to Alphaliner projections.