[ MOL Orders 3 Post-Panamax Contanier Ships From Imabari ]

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines(MOL) announced recently that it had ordered thre
e post-Panamax container-shops from Imabari Shipbuilding Co., Ltd.

The ships, each with a container-carrying capacity of 5,500 TEUs inc
luding 480 FEUs of reefer boxes, will be delivered between March and S
eptember 2001.

On receipt of the new 25-knot ships, MOL will deploy them in the Asi
a/North Europe service it operates with American President Lines and H
yundai Merchant Marine within the three parties' New World Alliance.

The new ships will replace the three 3,700-TEU Panamax vessels that
MOL currently has deployed in the serivce alongside five 4,700-TEU pos
t-Panamax containerships. The three displaced ships will be transferr
ed to other routes.

In announcing the order for the new ships, MOL indicated that it was
acting incoordination with its alliance partners who alos plan to acq
uire new tonnage.