On February 9, Danish shipping giant Maersk announced via its official website that it has signed a contract with China’s private shipbuilder New Times Shipbuilding for the construction of eight 18,600 TEU LNG dual-fuel container vessels to be delivered in 2029 and 2030.
As early as November 2025, news broke that Maersk had essentially finalized a deal with New Times Shipbuilding to build its latest LNG dual-fuel container vessel project, with the disclosed order volume at 8+4 vessels.
Maersk has not disclosed the cost of the order. The market previously predicted that the cost per vessel would be about US$190 million. Based on this, the total value of the eight new ships exceeds US$1.5 billion (about RMB 10.4 billion).
Maersk introduced that this container ship measures 366 meters in length and 58.6 meters in beam, making it more compact than the current largest container vessels at 400 meters in length. It will be equipped with dual-fuel engines capable of operating on either conventional marine fuel oil or liquefied natural gas.
This batch of new vessels is an important part of Maersk’s ongoing fleet renewal program, which will help it maintain its fleet competitiveness. The new vessels adopt the same specifications and will form a new 18,600 TEU class of vessels.
Anda Cristescu, Head of Chartering & Newbuilding at Maersk stated: “Deployment flexibility has been a key factor in our decision-making. Although these vessels are large, they offer greater flexibility than the largest ships currently being built in our industry. This provides us with multiple deployment options across both our current and future network.”
This shipment of eight new vessels is not the first collaboration between Maersk and New Times Shipbuilding. In 2024, the two companies signed an order for six 15,000 TEU LNG dual-fuel container vessels. This was the first order under Maersk’s LNG dual-fuel newbuilding program and Maersk’s first order for LNG dual-fuel powered vessels. The order reportedly also included six other vessels of the same type as options. The container vessel order from 2024 is expected to be delivered starting in 2028.
As one of China’s leading private shipbuilders, New Times Shipbuilding operates dry docks with capacities of 500,000 tons, 300,000 tons, and 100,000 tons. Its primary products include large and medium-sized bulk carriers, tankers, container vessels, and various types of chemical tankers.
With increasing orders, New Times Shipbuilding is investing RMB 5 billion to expand its production capacity. The new project covers 900 mu (approximately 60 hectares) and will feature a new 700-meter dry dock equipped with 1,000-ton and 1,600-ton gantry cranes. This new dock will enable the simultaneous construction of two VLCCs. Upon full completion, New Times Shipbuilding will operate four dry docks.
On the shipowner side, by 2026, Maersk has become another major shipowner to finalize a large shipbuilding project, following COSCO Shipping, MSC and Evergreen Marine. With the latest announcement of orders for 8 new vessels, Maersk currently has an order backlog of 33 vessels, of which 4 are expected to be delivered in 2026.
On January 13, 2026, COSCO Shipping Lines, a subsidiary of COSCO SHIPPING Group, placed an order with CSSC Jiangnan Shipyard for 12 dual-fuel LNG-powered container vessels of 18,000 TEU capacity. The total contract value amounts to RMB 16.788 billion, with delivery expected between 2028 and 2029.
On January 27, Evergreen Marine confirmed orders for a total of 23 container vessels of two types from CSSC Huangpu Wenchong Shipbuilding and Yangzijiang Shipbuilding’s subsidiary, New Yangtze Shipbuilding. The total cost ranges from US$1.205 billion to US$1.47 billion. Huangpu Wenchong officially announced the order earlier this month.
Additionally, Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) has reportedly placed an additional order for eight 11,500 TEU LNG dual-fuel container vessels with Penglai Zhongbai Jinglu Ship Industry Co., Ltd. (Jinglu Shipyard). This brings the total number of vessels of the same type ordered under their cooperative construction program to 16. Each new vessel is valued at approximately US$140 million, with the entire order valued at around US$2.24 billion. All 16 vessels are scheduled for delivery by 2029.