On the evening of January 19, Ningbo Ocean Shipping announced the formal signing of a contract to invest in and build four 4,300 TEU container ships. This ship type represents the largest container ship capacity Ningbo Ocean Shipping has ever invested in, signifying a significant step forward in enhancing its core shipping capacity and supporting the national “Belt and Road” initiative and the new development pattern of “dual circulation.”
According to the announcement, Ningbo Ocean Shipping has fully funded the establishment of Ningbo Ocean Shipping (Singapore) Weihang Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Singapore Weihang) in Singapore through its existing wholly-owned subsidiary Ningbo Ocean Shipping (Singapore) Co., Ltd. The newly established entity will be responsible for the investment, construction and operation of the above-mentioned project involving four 4,300 TEU container ships, with a total investment of approximately RMB 1.7 billion (about US$244 million).
On January 16, Singapore Weihang signed a contract with China State Shipbuilding Corporation Huangpu Wenchong Shipbuilding for the construction of four 4,300 TEU (56,700 deadweight tonnage) container ships. The contract value for each vessel is RMB 409.8 million, totaling RMB 1.6392 billion for all four. The four new vessels are scheduled for delivery before April 30, 2028.
The new vessel is approximately 220 meters long and 37.5 meters wide, with a designed service speed of about 19 knots. It boasts advantages such as large container capacity, low per-container transport costs, high operational flexibility and high speed. This vessel integrates advanced equipment such as a desulfurization tower, SCR denitrification system, and high-voltage shore power system, complying with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) emission reduction requirements and the national “dual-carbon” strategy. It can effectively control nitrogen oxide and sulfur oxide emissions, and can achieve “zero emissions” during berthing by using shore power.
In recent years, Ningbo Ocean Shipping has scientifically planned its fleet capacity allocation based on business development needs, continuously advancing the low-carbon and intelligent transformation of its fleet while expanding its scale and market competitiveness. Since completing its shareholding reform in March 2021, the company has built a total of 24 new vessels, adding approximately 640,000 deadweight tons to its fleet. Latest data indicates that the company now operates a fleet of 113 vessels with a total deadweight tonnage exceeding 1.8 million tons.