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Evergreen Continues Expansion Ordering 20 Boxships for $2.6 Billion

Evergreen large containership order
Ever Forever was one of two ships deivered by Samsung at the end of 2020 (Evergreen)

Published Mar 26, 2021 11:24 AM by The Maritime Executive

Taiwan’s Evergreen Line has become the latest container shipping line to enter into a large newbuilding contract. The company confirmed in a stock exchange filing that it has placed a total order valued at $2.6 billion. News of the order comes as the line has suffered a major embarrassment as one of its large boxships grounded in the Suez Canal blocking the vital commerce route.

According to the filing, the Board of Directors approved the order for 20 new containerships to be built by Samsung Heavy Industries. Each of the ships will have a capacity of 15,000 TEU. The construction price is between $115 and $130 million per ship. The total contract value is set at between $2.3 and $2.6 billion.

Few details were provided on the order, but Samsung said the ships would be fitted with energy-saving devices and the SVESSEL smart ship solution. Delivery is expected to be completed by June 2025.

Samsung is calling the order the largest single order in the world for containerships helping the yard to build its current leadership in the segment. According to Clarkson Research, Samsung currently has half of all the orders for new containerships. In total, the Korean shipyard has booked orders for 42 ships in 2021 with a total value of $5 billion.

This latest order continues Evergreen’s expansion program for its fleet. They currently have a fleet of nearly 200 ships with a carrying capacity of 1.3 million TEU. Evergreen took delivery on its newest ships in December 2020, the sixth and seventh new 12,000 TEU class F-type containerships. They were built at the Geoje Shipyard of Samsung Heavy Industries.

As of the beginning of 2021, Evergreen had taken delivery of sixteen newly built containerships, including seven 12,000 TEU F-type ships and nine 1,800 TEU C-type ships in 2020. Evergreen reports that it has another 53 newbuildings to be delivered, including vessels owned by the carrier and ships that will operate under charter. The line’s order book includes ten 24,000 TEU A-type, thirteen additional 12,000 TEU F-type ships, fourteen 2,500 TEU O-type ships, and sixteen 1,800 TEU C-type ships of 1,800 TEU. These orders are all scheduled to be delivered by the end of 2022.