Evergreen Group has signed an order with Japanese shipbuilder Imabari for ten 2,800 TEU class B-type vessels. These are in addition to the order for ten similar vessels already announced from CSBC in Taiwan.
The first ship is planned to be delivered during the first half of 2018 with the completion of the series due by the first half of 2019. All twenty ships are planned to be deployed in the intra-Asia trade.
Evergreen’s B-type vessels will be 211 m in length, 32.8 m wide, and have a design draft of 10 m with a capacity of around 2,800 TEU. The ships are designed to load 13 rows of containers on deck, which is within the span of existing gantry cranes in the major ports on the intra-Asian trade. The hull design of the vessels is wider in comparison to ships of a similar capacity. Such design enables the ships to navigate in the shallower ports encountered in the intra-Asia trade and to enhance their cargo carrying capability. The ships can cruise at a speed up to 21.8 knots, assisting their on-time performance and competitiveness.
This agreement represents the third project in which Imabari expects to participate in Evergreen Line’s fleet renewal program. Evergreen has signed agreements with Shoei Kisen Kaisha, the ship owning arm of Imabari Shipbuilding Group, to charter five 14,000 TEU containerships due to be delivered in 2017 and eleven 18,000 TEU containerships due to be delivered in 2018 and 2019.
