Singapore-based Samudera Shipping Line has restructured its fleet fixing a newbuilding and selling two older vessels.
[s2If is_user_logged_in()]The 2008-built 1,732TEU sister pair Sinar Sabang and Sinar Sumba, were commissioned as newbuildings from Guangzhou Wenchong Shipyard, have been sold for US$6.8 million each, to German tonnage provider Leonhardt & Blumberg. The latter is the largest owner of the Wenchong 1700 series, with 22 of such vessels in its fleet.
Sinar Sabang was operated by Samudera, while Sinar Sumba was chartered to Taiwanese liner operator Evergreen Marine Corporation. Samudera had purchased the ships during the last shipping boom, in September 2007, from another German tonnage provider, Thien & Heyenga.
Meanwhile, Samudera has chartered a 2020-built 1,876TEU ship, Sinar Sunda, from Japanese tonnage provider Osaka Asahi Kaiun.
Samudera’s latest interim results, for the first half of 2020, showed net profits rose tripled year-on-year to US$7.28 million, as container freight rates spiked during the Covid-19 pandemic.
While incorporated in Singapore, the publicly-listed Samudera is 65% owned by the Indonesian group PT Samudera Indonesia Tbk, which is controlled by Masli Mulia. Samudera began its operations in 1993, with feeder routes to Jakarta and Bangkok, which were subsequently extended to India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and other Indonesian ports.
Samudera’s fleet, comprising owned and chartered vessels, currently stands at 23, making it the 40th largest liner operator with total capacity of 28,591TEU.
Martina Li
Asia Correspondent
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