SITC International Holdings Co has allowed a series of eight feeder ship newbuilding options to lapse.
Yang ShaopengThe options for 1,100-teu ships were all attached to orders placed at China’s Yangfan Group between late 2010 and April this year.
In November last year SITC placed firm orders for four 1,100-teu ships plus options for an additional four exercisable in pairs by June and August 2011.
Then in April this year it ordered a further pair of 1,100-teu newbuildings with the Yangfan Group plus tagged on another six options.
At the time the six optional vessels were exercisable in pairs with deadlines of June, September and December 2011.
In September the first pair of options were exercised, but the exercise dates for the remaining options were all pushed back to the end of December.
“After careful evaluation of the company’s requirements under the current market conditions we have decided not to exercise the options,” SITC said.
With a growing uncertainty about the growth of China’s economy SITC looks to have reigned in its newbuilding ambitions.
It owns a fleet of sixteen vessels with ages ranging from four to 16 years, but charters in a lot of tonnage. It is the fourth largest intra-Asia operator.
These are not the first orders SITC has cancelled. In August it pulled the plug on orders for two 1,040-teu ships at South Korea’s Dae Sun Shipbuilding.
However, the shipowner still has a trio of feederships on order at Dae Sun which were ordered in November 2010 at a total cost of $59.3m.