Nordcapital places $1.4 billion order with HHI for 13,100-TEU ships

Nordcapital places $1.4 billion order with HHI for 13,100-TEU ships German shipowner and investment company Nordcapital has ordered eight 13,100-TEU containerships from Hyundai Heavy Industries in a deal worth $1.4 billion, the largest single order the Korean shipyard has ever received for commercial ships.
   The vessels, to be delivered from April 2010 to March 2011, will also be the biggest box ships HHI has ever built. The ships will be designed with what Nordcapital described as an “environmental passport,” an economic main engine fitted for low-sulphur fuels, TBT-free paint coatings and inboard fuel tanks.
   Hamburg-based Nordcapital said it is talks with a number of Asian and European shipping lines for charter hire of the vessels.
   “We believe the dynamic growth in the container industry will continue for many years to come,” said Erck Rickmers, chairman of the executive board of the Nordcapital Group. “With rising volumes and higher energy prices bigger ships will become necessary for our customers to remain competitive.”
   K.S. Choi, president of HHI, said: “We are happy to further strengthen our close ties with Nordcapital, after the group had already placed 45 orders with shipyards of the Hyundai family in the past. The new ships will become a benchmark in the container industry.”