It’s the shipping company’s eternal dilemma: charter or purchase? To be fair, the answer isn’t as obvious as one might think, since the shipping business is subject to continual cycles.
Today, the ship charter market has gone through the roof, a consequence of the rebound from the health crisis, especially out of Asia and in America, which is totally congested.
Daily costs have skyrocketed, with a knock-on effect on freight rates, exacerbated by rising oil prices. It’s a situation that has seen a return to favour of non-vessel-operating common carriers (NVOCCs[M1] ), who are currently surfing the wave.
The upward spiral that we have experienced since November 2020 highlights the subtle and skilful balancing act shipping companies need to perform between owned and chartered vessels in their fleets. Indeed, chartering raises the issue of multi-year commitment with very limited visibility with regard to fluctuations in markets and supply and demand.
In its refusal to sit by and endure the increases, over the years and depending on means Marfret has managed to protect itself by purchasing seven ships, thus reducing the risk factor on its regular services.
Inn a context of strong growth in containerized freight, our company recently completed the purchase of an eighth ship, the Nordmaple, which until recently was on charter on our NASP service between Europe, the United States and the Pacific.
The 2500-TEU Nordmaple, with its 750 reefer plugs, is a relatively new ship, having been built in 2018. It is equipped with a latest-generation fuel-injected engine that meets the strictest EEDI requirements. Its excellent fuel economy completely fulfils our NASP service’s needs.
In addition to safeguarding our business structure, this new acquisition reflects our company’s policy of constant improvement in our CO2/tonne carried emissions ratio.
Guillaume Vidil
[M1]Ok pour toi ?