Israel's Zim Integrated Shipping Services Ltd. is reported to be planning its first newbuilding orders since the financial crash.
According to local reports, the company has recently signed letters of intent with a dozen Asian shipyards.
Zim president and CEO Rafi Danieli noted that the company has not ordered newbuildings for nearly a decade, having entered the financial crisis with more than 40 containerships on order, most of which were cancelled.
Danieli noted that the company is in talks with yards, owners and banks, with the intention of ordering between seven and 10 ships of over TEU 13,000, to be deployed in the transpacific - whence 40% of Zim revenue comes - are also needed to exploit the expanded Panama Canal that opens next year.
Zim operates on the transpacific in co-ordination with the G6 Alliance, and any commitment to taking vessels of this size is subject to operating the ships together with its partners. Zim posted a net loss of US$127 million for 2014, narrowing it from US$343 million the previous year, despite falling revenue. Its fourth quarter loss was US$4 million reduced from US$20 million.
