COSCO Shipping Holdings Doubles Down on Containerships with Record-Breaking Orders

COSCO Shipping Holdings has made significant investments in newbuilding commitments for containerships in 2026, ordering a total of 48 vessels. The latest order comprises 18 additional containerships with a combined value of RMB20.27bn ($2.99bn), bringing the company's total newbuilding commitments in the segment for 2026 to 48 vessels.

The order includes 12 LNG dual-fuel megamaxes, each with a nominal capacity of 22,000 TEU (21,700 TEU as stated by the shipyard) at CSSC's Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding. The price per vessel is $224m, making the total for this batch $2.688bn.

Additionally, six wide-beam feeder ships of 3,200 TEU each will be constructed at CSSC's Huangpu Wenchong yard, costing RMB339.8m ($50m) per unit, or RMB2.039bn ($300m) in total. These feeder vessels are designed for regional and feeder trades.

This order marks a significant shift toward LNG, as the Jiangnan series was the group's first move into LNG-fuelled containership newbuildings, after previously focusing on methanol and conventional propulsion.