Seaspan orders 14,000-TEU ships

   Seaspan Corp. said Wednesday it signed contracts for the construction of five 14,000-TEU class containerships at Hyundai Heavy Industries.
   The vessels are scheduled for delivery in 2015 and will be constructed using Seaspan’s fuel efficient SAVER design.
   Concurrently with executing the newbuilding contracts, Seaspan signed 10-year, fixed-rate time charters for the vessels with Yang Ming Marine Transport Corp. After the initial 10-year charter periods, Yang Ming may extend the charter for each vessel up to an additional two years.
   These five 14,000-TEU ships remain subject to allocation in relation to the right of first refusal agreement with Greater China Intermodal Investments LLC, an investment vehicle established by an affiliate of global alternative asset manager The Carlyle Group, and Blue Water Commerce LLC.
   Michael Webber, a securities analyst with Wells Fargo said the purchase price of $600 million for the five ships, or about $8,600 per TEU, “was slightly above expectations, likely reflecting the inclusion of advanced ballast water treatment systems (in anticipation of forthcoming International Maritime Organization regulations) and electronically controlled main engines (for fuel efficiency).” – Chris Dupin