Speaking at the first port call to Hong Kong by K Line’s latest 14,000-teu container ship, the Manchester Bridge, Banga added that while there will still be space for some smaller players with 50 to 100 ships under management in specialist niche segments, those with just a few ships will probably be absorbed.
Diversified group Caravel’s ship management arm Fleet Management is the technical manager for two of K Line’s initial order of five ships in this class. “The rest is not decided yet,” said Banga.
The trend towards scale is being seen among shipowners too, he added. “Everybody is moving to economies of scale, and smaller three to five ship owners are dying out,” he said.
Meanwhile ports are also adapting to the mega-box carrier trend, with more automation and higher productivity. However there is still a gap in efficiency levels between ports in Asia and those in Europe, where turnaround time can be as much as a third slower.
The Manchester Bridge joins the CKYHE alliance’s NE2 loop on the Asia-Europe trade and the alliance partners are set to gradually switch to this vessel size from the current 8,000-teu ships. The 14,000-teu class is seen emerging as the workhorse of the Asia-Europe trade for the CKYHE alliance.
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