Maersk Expands Orderbook with Eight 18,600 TEU Dual-Fuel Vessels Despite Market Downturn

A.P. Moller-Maersk is pressing ahead with fleet renewal despite a deteriorating freight rate environment, ordering eight 18,600 teu dual-fuel vessels from New Times Shipbuilding in China just days after reporting a fourth-quarter loss in its ocean shipping segment.

The order, announced on 9 February, takes Maersk’s orderbook to 33 vessels and positions deliveries across 2029 and 2030 — precisely when the industry’s current wave of newbuilding capacity is expected to flood the market.

Anda Cristescu, head of chartering and newbuilding at Maersk, said the vessels offer deployment flexibility that the largest ultra-large container vessels (ULCVs) cannot match. At 366 m in length and 58.6 m in breadth, the series sits below the 24,000 teu mega-ship segment and can access a wider range of ports and services than the 400 m vessels that now dominate the largest trades.