GENOA's Ignazio Messina & Co is reportedly behind the order for four 3,000-TEU container/ro-ro ships designed to replace 30-year-old 1,500-TEUers that have become too expensive to operate around the Med and Africa.
GENOA's Ignazio Messina & Co is reportedly behind the order for four 3,000-TEU container/ro-ro ships designed to replace 30-year-old 1,500-TEUers that have become too expensive to operate around the Med and Africa.
The ships, going for US$290-300 million a piece, are to be built at the South Korea's STX Offshore & Shipbuilding and delivered in December 2014, reported London's Containerisation International.
The ships are similar to four ordered at Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering in 2009, two of which are already in service,
Broad of beam at 37 metres and 240 metres long, they are postpanamaxers capable of shipping a diverse mix of cargo that Messina moves between Mediterranean and less sophisticated harbours in around Africa, the Mideast and south Asia.
Many of these ports, where these versatile vessels are well suited, still handle forest products, cocoa and coffee as breakbulk as well as heavylift project and automotive cargo, despite recent advances in container handling technology.
