HMM plans to order more container ships
SEOUL : South Korea‘s flagship liner company, HMM, after increasing its fleet size by approximately 50% through another South Korean Shipping giant, SK Shipping, is currently planning to order more container ships.
In fact, as the flagship liner company of South Korea, HMM is implementing an ambitious expansion plan. By 2030, HMM will invest no less than 23.5 trillion won (17.5 billion US dollars) to significantly expand its container and dry bulk fleet, aiming to achieve future growth and become a global green shipping and logistics company.
The actual controller of SK Shipping, Hahn & Co., has selected HMM as the preferred bidder. SK Shipping currently operates approximately 62 vessels of various types, including 14 LNG carriers. HMM’s acquisition of SK Shipping mainly involves oil tankers and bulk carriers, and does not involve LNG carriers and container ships.
As a member of Premier Alliance, in order to further strengthen its container shipping business, HMM plans to invest 13.5 billion US dollars by 2030.
In terms of the expansion of its container fleet, as of now, HMM has not disclosed specific new shipbuilding plans or plans to expand its fleet through mergers and acquisitions.
ay Y Lee, Executive Vice President of HMM and Head of the Container Business Department, pointed out that it is unlikely for HMM to achieve growth through mergers and acquisitions.
He said, “It depends on the shareholders of HMM. They are all state-owned companies.” The South Korean government has no intention of interfering in the shipping industry. These container shipping companies are all private enterprises.
He emphasized, “HMM is a member of the Premier Alliance. My idea is to have ships roughly the same as those of other members, so that better collaborative operations can be achieved.”
He believes that container ships with a capacity of 10,000 to 16,000 TEU have the greatest flexibility, allowing them to call at numerous ports and enter a broader market.
After Hapag-Lloyd withdrew from THE Alliance, HMM, Yang Ming Marine Transport and Ocean Network Shipping (ONE) formed the Premier Alliance, which was officially launched in February this year and has a validity period of five years.
Regarding Premier Alliance, Jay Y Lee said, “To overcome the problem of ship shortage, we are cooperating with Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) to operate Mediterranean and Nordic routes, and cooperating with CMA CGM Group to operate transatlantic routes.”
He pointed out that the ships deployed by Premier Alliance members are relatively new, which will help improve the operational efficiency of the fleet, enhance the reliability of services, and offer competitive prices.
We haven’t seen any disadvantages or problems in Premier Alliance.
He added that the alliance has three members instead of four, which makes the decision-making process seem better and more efficient.
In terms of decision-making, the time spent is shorter.
He said, “Yang Ming Marine Transport and ONE have invested in 13,000 TEU and 16,000 TEU container ships respectively, while HMM has 12 24,000 TEU and 8 16,000 TEU vessels.”
The average age of the HMM fleet is approximately five years and it was delivered in 2020.
According to the latest data from Alphaliner, HMM ranks 8th among the top 100 global liner companies in terms of capacity, operating 84 vessels, including 64 owned vessels and 20 leased vessels, with a total capacity of 922,000 TEU. In addition, HMM also holds 8 new shipbuilding orders totaling 69,000 TEU.