Zodiac Maritime Orders Five 6,000 TEU Containerships

Containers on a boxship's deck as seen from the ship's bridge
Corporate News Shipping Asia
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Updated Published

Zodiac Maritime has returned to the shipbuilding market with an order for five 6,000 TEU containerships in China, a deal valued at nearly $400 million.

Brokers report that the Eyal Ofer-led company placed the order at China Merchants Jinling Shipyard, with each vessel priced between $78 million and $79 million. Deliveries are expected to begin in 2028, though some handovers may extend into 2029 depending on yard schedules and specifications.

Industry sources remain divided on whether the order is speculative or backed by charter agreements. Alphaliner has suggested the ships could be linked to Cosco, but this has yet to be confirmed.

The newbuildings are believed to share a design similar to the four 6,000 TEU vessels that Idan Ofer’s Eastern Pacific Shipping ordered from the same yard earlier this year.

This move follows Zodiac’s previous newbuilding program in South Korea, where it ordered 15,000 TEU ships at Hanwha Ocean in 2021 and 2022. Those larger vessels were later taken over by MSC, the world’s biggest container carrier.