SHIPPING AND SHIP MANAGEMENT prepared or has been made by Hamburg Süd. Presenting the 2007 annual report of Hamburg Süd head Klaus Meves was quoted as saying it was a shame that a grand shipping company like Hapag-Lloyd was the subject of merger and take-over speculation again. The talk would, he said, change nothing as far as the excellent co-operation between the two was concerned. Buoyed by continuing high world economic growth of over 5 per cent, Hamburg Süd container shipping volume rose an above-average 11 per cent last year while container totals were up 17 per cent to 2.14 million TEUs. But higher operating costs have led to an EUR 150 per container rise at Hamburg Süd from mid May. Investing as never before The company is now investing as never before in new ships and containers to keep pace with the growth in world trade and bolster the number of its own ships. It invested EUR 600 million last year – 70 per cent more than in 2006 – to increase own ships and reduce slot costs, Meves said. Total investments in ships and containers between this year and 2011 will total EUR 1.7 billion. The owner, who already has 30 of its 155 owned and chartered ships under the German flag, has also just become the latest to announce it is flagging back ships. It said all 17 newbuildings of total <strong>10</strong>4,000 TEUs on order for delivery up to 2011 will be registered at home. That has started with the new, 5,900 TEU Rio de la Plata. She is the first of five new Rio Class vessels for Europe-South America service that will eventually replace the company’s 5,552 TEU Monte Class ships being moved to Europe-Asia routes. Engine Protection Partner AS Schaller Automation’s Oil Mist Detector systems P.O. Box 2668 Møhlenpris, NO-5836 Bergen, <strong>No</strong>rway Phone: +47 55 30 19 00 Fax: +47 55 30 19 01 www.epp.no Despite the problems of finding even more German nautical and engineering personnel, owners have pledged to return another <strong>10</strong>0 ships this year to the home register, bringing the total to 500 by the end of 2008. They have promised to flag-back a further <strong>10</strong>0 up to 20<strong>10</strong>. It is all part of an ongoing campaign to strengthen Germany as a shipping location and reward the German Government for supporting shipping. It is a shame that a grand shipping company like Hapag-Lloyd is the subject of merger and takeover speculation again. Elsewhere, fleet expansion of the kind being seen with Hapag- Lloyd and Hamburg Süd is also rife among other German shipping companies. Senator Lines has announced it is increasing its capacity on its klaus Meves of Hamburg Süd. service linking the Mediterranean with the Mideast and Asia. “With growth of more than 20 per cent on the Mediterranean– Asia trade lanes last year, we believe that this is the right strategy to react to the market and to further increase our market share”, said CEO Hans-Hermann Mohr. Deutsche Afrika Linien is renewing its chemical tanker fleet with newbuildings from Turkey and has added a seventh ship to its core SAECS service. It says it is not adding capacity, just making its service more flexible. Like everyone else, DAL also complains of high bunkers, which increased rates can only partially compensate for. Back in the liner shipping news this Spring is the Deutsche Seereederei in Rostock (DSR), which has holdings in Stinnes and Scandlines but has not directly been involved in liner shipping for years. DSR chief Horst Rahe said the company was interested in rebuilding its shipping sector and in eventually taking over Scandlines. He said a fleet of around 20 ships was needed to launch a viable shipping operation. Baltic port projects Rahe revealed that DSR was also looking at three port projects in the Baltic, one of them in Riga, with a view to establishing a port network for container handling over the next 7–<strong>10</strong> years. He predicted that container handling in the area would rise from 5 million tons to 20 million. “We would like to be part of that”, he said. Elsewhere, German shipping companies which were small just a few years ago are also expanding rapidly with a seemingly endless flow of newbuildings from Asia and particularly China. The list is endless, but among the most recent owners in the news is Hartmann Reederei, showing that Asia is not just up for container feeders for Europe. Hartmann has just taken delivery of three ships from Asia, one the Japan-built 150,000 DWT tanker Tango. The others are a Supramax bulker and a box feeder ship from China. <strong>No</strong>rddeutsche Reederei, Ahrenkiel, Bockstiegel, Klaus Hesse, Drewitz and Carsten Rehder are just a few of the other German shipowners feeding their expansion plans with tonnage from Asian and Far East yards. tom todd Schaller Automation’s repair and service department – come directly to us, save time & money! � repair centre – max 2 days repair time � main stock for spare parts – 1 day delivery time � sales of new and reconditioned VISATRON O.M.D. � open 24 hours/7 days a week � exchange unit service for all VISATRON systems � overhaul and service of the following system series: VN /79, VN /82, VN /87 & VN /93 62 SCANDINAVIAN SHIPPING GAZETTE • MAY 16, 2008 HAMburG SüD
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