Athens based Box Ships Inc. buys MSC Emma

Container ship owner-charterer Box Ships Inc. will buy a Panamax vessel with capacity for 5,060 20-foot equivalents under an agreement with an unaffiliated third party.

The MSC Emma will be chartered to Mediterranean Shipping Co. for three years at a gross daily rate of $28,500, with an optional one-year extension. Athens-based Box Ships said the $55 million acquisition will be financed without issuing additional equity.

Box Ships has six container ships with total capacity of 28,177 TEUs and a weighted-average age 2.8 years. The acquisition of the MSC Emma, built in 2004, will increase the fleet’s capacity to 33,237 TEUs and its weighted-average age to 3.6 years.