Vessel renewal programme in full swing

SHIPPING LINE Safmarine is adding seven new vessels to its owned fleet – one of which is the largest container ship the line has ever owned. Five of the new fleet additions are being built at the Volkswerft shipyard in Stralsund, Germany. The first two – the 33 915-ton deadweight, 2 474-teu capacity Safmarine Nyassa and Safmarine Ngami – have already been launched. The Ngami is also already in service – having just made her maiden calls at the US east coast ports of Newark and Baltimore in the first week of April – and the Nyassa is to join the Amex service between Southern Africa and the US east coast in May. A third of the series of five will join the same trade – but the deployment of the other two will be announced closer to their delivery dates. The Ngami’s arrival in Newark on April 2 was an historic day for the 61-year-old line – she was the first fully-owned container ship carrying the Safmarine logoscript on a white hull to call in the US, the service having previously been served only with chartered tonnage. Meantime, at the Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction shipyard in Busan, Republic of Korea, the line’s largest owned container ship ever– the 81 300-tdwt, 6 160-TEU capacity, post-Panamax class, Safmarine Kariba – was named on April 2. She will join the Prime Express service between India, the Middle East and Europe this month.