MSC may overtake Maersk in battle for giant box ships to gain market share

Time:2012-02-22 Browse:48 Author:RISINGSUN

MSC took delivery of its 43rd ship above 11,500 TEU capacity earlier this month in a bid to realise its goal of operating a full fleet of 11,500- to 14,000-TEU vessels on all four of its Far East-Europe/Mediterranean strings by the end of March, reports Alphaliner.

It said the carrier will from then onwards be able to deploy ships above 12,500 TEU on its four Far East-Europe/Med strings, with the remaining 11,500-TEU containerships displaced by the latest newbuildings.


According to the report, MSC`s fleet of giant box ships it owns exceeds that of the Maersk Line`s fleet, with the latter possessing 21 ships of above 11,500 TEU, much fewer than MSC`s 43 units.


MSC is scheduled to take delivery of more giant containerships, which will raise the number of 11,500- to 14,000-TEU vessels in its own fleet to 56 by the end of the year. Within this total, 52 vessels will be bigger than 12,500 TEU.


On the other hand, Maersk will receive the first of its giant Triple-E ships in early 2013. "This gives MSC an edge to increase its market share substantially this year, mainly at the expense of Maersk," said Alphaliner.


It forecasts that by the end of 2012, MSC will have a surplus of 13 vessels ranging in size from 11,500-14,000 TEU "for which it has not yet unveiled any plans, although the most likely destination is the Far East-Europe trade," it said.


The report added that the "expected introduction of new tonnage by MSC on the Far East-Europe route could boost the carrier`s capacity share from 15.5 per cent to around 17.5 per cent by the end of the year. According to this scenario, Maersk`s share of market capacity would be reduced from 23.6 per cent to 21 per cent over the same period," Alphaliner said.