THE seven-year-old Hammonia Grenada has become the youngest containership ever to be sold for scrap at a price of US$315 per LDT, or $5.5 million, breaking the previous record set last month by the 2009-built Panamax, Rickmers India.
Brokers say that the demolition is a confirmation of the plummeting value of Panamax ships after the opening of the expanded Panama Canal. Vessels of up to twice the capacity of the India and Grenada can now carry containers on trans-Pacific routes to the US east coast and to Latin American hubs like Freeport, Santos and Buenos Aires.
Panamaxes lost about two thirds of their value in 2016, and they are headed to the breakers in record numbers. BIMCO said in November that boxship demolitions reached an all-time high for the ten months ending in October and accelerated in the second half, led by Panamax scrapping, reported The Maritime Executive.
The Chinese-built Grenada (ex CSAV Laraquete) is the second mid-size boxship scrapped by Hammonia in the past year, following the 3,100 TEU Westphalia, another relatively young vessel.
