We’ve just received an update on containership orders from Braemar Seascope‘s research unit, arguably one of the better sources of information on the subject. The latest figures make us feel slightly giddy: 52 boxships of 10,000 TEUs or more ordered since the start of the year, adding 765,000 TEUs to the global post-panamax boxship orderbook. As of 30th August 2011, a total of 158 units of this size aggregating 2.13 million TEUs were on order. This represents 48% of the fully cellular ships in the pipeline.
Gazing at the numbers, we can’t help but wonder. Wouldn’t this newbuilding craze lead to overcapacity in the containership market? How many ports are prepared to receive the giant boxships? Will there be enough qualified seamen to run the ships and the sophisticated equipment on board? What if the world economy slows down? Questions, questions. Perhaps we should consult the Delphi Oracle, if one exists in the shipping world. ~Barista Uno
Table 1: 10,000TEU or larger containerships ordered since Jan 1, 2011
Table 2: Order year for ships of 10,000TEU or larger
