MEGA boxships are still more economical
to run than smaller vessels, says Orient Overseas (International) chief
financial officer Alan Tung.
While
the benefits of ultra large containerships have declined with the drop in oil
prices, he said, "comparing our 20,000-TEU class to 13,000-TEU, we are
still expecting lower unit system costs".
Before
the plunge in oil prices, the reduction of unit costs could have been as much
as 20 per cent. "Today's savings are half that, which is still significant
in an industry where margins remain competitive.
OOIL
ordered six 21,100-TEU ships from Samsung Heavy industries in March 2015.
These newbuildings are scheduled for delivery in 2017.
Mr
Tung's came partly in response to Hong Kong's China Merchants general manager
Bai Jingtao saying mega boxships have drawbacks that overshadow their
benefits.
But
Mr Tung said his mega ship orders will serve his company's strategy well in
expanding Asia-Europe services - where these leviathans can be well deployed.
"I
don't think any shipping lines can predict the performance of each individual
trade lane. So in our concept, the appropriate diversification on the [market]
portfolio will probably be the safest and wisest way to operate the
business," he said.
Source
: HKSG.
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