In commemoration of World Maritime Day, PTI has put together a list of the top five shipping stories which have taken place so far in 2015.
The shipping industry has seen major events and developments in the last 6-8 months, reflecting the fast pace that the industry operates under, as well as the unpredictability with which future developments are forecasted.
Here is a list of the top five shipping stories of 2015:
1) Egypt Open $8.5bn Suez Canal Expansion
The Suez Canal, vying with Panama to be the world’s most important trade canal, was opened in August, 2015, marking the start of a significant era in container movements, travelling from Asia and destined for Europe. The Suez Canal Expansion project took only 10 months to complete and is anticipated to see a doubling of revenue to around US$13 billion.
2) OOCL Order Six 21,000 TEU Record Vessels
Hong Kong-based container shipping company Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL) recently set a new record with the largest order for containerships, having ordered six vessels with a 21,150 TEU. While other shipping lines have placed their mega shipping orders, this remains the largest per ship capacity.
3) Global Fleet Now 20 Million TEU
PTI reported in mid-September, 2015 that the world’s global shipping fleet had reached a massive 20 million. Maersk own the largest segment of container shipping, with its total fleet surpassing three million TEU. With MSC and CMA CGM, all three carriers currently account for the top three shipping companies in the world.
4) Designers Plan 22,000 TEU Mega-Ship
When the industry thought that containerships couldn’t get any bigger, it was recently revealed that designers were in talks to design the next generation 22,000 TEU mega-ship. Ships of this magnitude are already in the process of progressing and could be operation in the next few years.
5) World's Busiest Shipping Route
Although not covered by PTI, we believe the world's busiest shipping route deserves some extra attention. In 2013, a total of more than 23.1 million TEU was shipped via the west bound and east bound routes from Asia-North America, according to the World Shipping Council. This is the equivalent to the total number of TEU across all the major lines capacities.
