Taiwan Government to Support Yang Ming's Fleet Expansion

Taiwan’s Transportation and Communications Minister Li Meng-yen announced at a press conference on July 30 that the government will back Yang Ming Marine Transport in commissioning more newbuildings following its recent management changes.

Li pointed out that Yang Ming's previous inactivity in ordering new ships has caused the Taiwanese operator to slip from eighth to tenth in market rankings. The Taiwanese government, through the Ministry of Transportation and Communications and the National Development Fund, holds the largest share in Yang Ming.

In May, after Yang Ming reported its 1Q 2024 results, the company's then general manager, Patrick Tu, mentioned the possibility of constructing 24,000 TEU ships, as relying solely on the capacity of its THE Alliance partners is not sustainable.

THE Alliance’s other members, Hapag-Lloyd, Ocean Network Express (ONE), and HMM, already possess 24,000 TEU ships. However, Hapag-Lloyd plans to exit the alliance to form Gemini Cooperation with Maersk Line in February 2025, which could affect THE Alliance’s competitiveness.

Today, Dr. Tsai Feng-ming, formerly a professor at National Taiwan Ocean University, and Yang Ming’s current chief strategy officer, Cliff Pai, will succeed Cheng Cheng-mount and Tu as the company's chairman and general manager, respectively.

In May 2023, Yang Ming placed an order for five LNG dual-fuelled 15,500 TEU ships from HD Hyundai Heavy Industries. These ships, set for delivery starting in 2026, are currently the only newbuildings on Yang Ming’s order book.

Li commented: “Yang Ming’s former chairman, Cheng, turned around the originally sluggish business with a substantial increase in profits and accumulated many assets for the company. Now that the tasks have been completed, the new chairman Tsai will lead everyone to welcome new challenges.”