Contships locks in $16,500-a-day ONE fixture as newbuild push builds

Contships Logistics has fixed the 1,742-teu-class feeder Contship Way to Ocean Network Express for 21 to 24 months at $16,500 per day, the strongest number in a quarter that also delivered a CMA CGM renewal and a $205.8m charter revenue backlog. The Nikolas Pateras-led Greek owner disclosed both fixtures in its third-quarter earnings report. The Contship Sky, meanwhile, stays with CMA CGM at $16,250 per day for 11 to 13 months. Contships did not specify exact commencement dates for either deal.

The two charters matter for one reason: duration. A 21-to-24-month commitment from ONE, one of the most disciplined tonnage providers in the feeder space, locks in revenue well past the typical spot window. And the rate itself tells you something. At $16,500 daily, ONE is paying a premium for certainty — roughly in line with what modern geared feeders have been commanding in a market where owners of quality tonnage hold the upper hand.

Selling old, contracting new

Contships is running a two-track strategy, and the numbers show both tracks moving. On one side, the group sold five containerships during the first nine months of 2026 for gross proceeds of $59m. That leaves 27 owned vessels at the end of September. Older, less employable tonnage goes out the door.

On the other side, employment for the remaining fleet gets longer. That's the whole mechanism: shed the ships charterers don't want, extend the ones they do. The $205.8m contracted charter revenue backlog — adjusted for subsequent developments, as of the latest reporting reference date — is the financial proof the strategy is working.

What does the newbuild programme change?

The big shift is scale. In October, Contships signed a letter of intent with China's Hubei Guangji Green Energy Shipbuilding covering 10 firm 1,324-teu containerships, plus two further sets of 10 options apiece. Do the arithmetic. Ten firm ships against a 27-vessel fleet is already a third of the owned fleet renewed in one stroke. Exercise all 30, and the programme exceeds the size of Contships' existing fleet.

For a company that has built its business on secondhand tonnage, moving into newbuilding ownership on this scale is a genuine pivot. It commits capital, it fixes delivery timelines, and it ties the fleet's fuel and efficiency profile to a single yard relationship in China.

The financing question is still open. Contships said it is evaluating financing alternatives for the newbuildings, with no final arrangement yet agreed. That's the one loose end shippers and competitors will watch, because the pace at which the letter of intent converts to firm contracts depends on it.

Why it matters for charterers and rivals

For feeder operators — CMA CGM, ONE and their peers — Contships' strategy means fewer quality feeder ships available on the spot market over time. Every ship moved onto a long charter is one fewer the market can bid on. And every older vessel sold, presumably into less demanding trades, tightens the pool further.

For rival owners, the 10-plus-20 order at Hubei Guangji signals where feeder economics are heading: new, fuel-efficient 1,324-teu units replacing an ageing global feeder fleet. Expect the letter-of-intent stage to convert quickly if the financing lands.

For shippers and forwarders, the effect is indirect but real. Carriers locking in modern feeder capacity at $16,250-$16,500 a day are stabilising their regional networks — and pricing that stability into the short-sea legs of their products.

The trajectory from here is clear from the source: more disposals of older vessels, more long fixtures at current levels, and a firm order at Hubei Guangi Green Energy Shipbuilding once financing is settled — a fleet that could double in scale if all 30 options fall into place.