Youngest boxship scrapped this year goes to yard

At only 10 years old, the 4,530-TEU Viktoria Wulff, owned by Erste RHW Schiffahrts and flagged in Liberia, is the newest containership so far this year to have been sold for scrap, according to Clarksons Research.    German shipowner Erste RHW Schiffahrts has sold the containership Viktoria Wulff for scrap, making it the youngest boxship to be sent to the scrap yard so far this year, according to a report from Clarksons Research.
   At only 10 years old, the 4,530-TEU Viktoria Wulff is three years younger than the recent Panamax vessels sold by Hammonia Reederei and Season Corp., and nearly 10 years younger than the five 1997-built ships sold by COSCO Holdings.
   London-based shipping consultant Drewry in July predicted containership scrapping in 2016 would double from the previous year, meaning an aggregate 450,000 TEUs would be taken off the water and sold.
   Clarksons Research said Erste RHW Schiffahrts shows the German owner received $303 per light displacement ton (ldt) for the Viktoria Wulff, significantly more than the $240 per ldt price Hammonia Reederi reportedly received for the 13-year-old Westphalia.
   “This is surprising as the (Islamic) Eid holidays have meant that it has been a very quiet week in the ship recycling sector,” Clarksons Research said in its latest weekly report. “However, the signs have been there for a while, as the lack of tonnage started to push rates up and we have been moving towards a scenario where yards have emptied and are open across the board in the Indian Sub-Continent.
   “This would help create healthy competition once again, which can only benefit owners,” it added.
   According to ocean carrier schedule and capacity database BlueWater Reporting, the Viktoria Wulff most recently operated on CMA CGM, Hamburg Sud, and UASC’s joint Vespucci/APNE pendulum between Asia, the North Coast South America, the East Coast North America and Europe, which is no longer in service.
   This story was first reported by maritime news outlet Splash 24/7.