Hapag-Lloyd orders 7,700 new reefers

News 21 Sep 2017 by WCN Editorial

Order includes 1,000 containers with controlled atmosphere technology from MCI’s plant in Chile.

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Hapag-Lloyd has announced an order for 7,000 x 40-foot and 700 x 20-foot new reefer containers. “1,000 of the new containers are equipped with the company's controlled atmosphere technology, which slows down the ripening process of various types of fruits and vegetables, allowing them to be transported for longer periods of time while maintaining a consistent quality,” the company stated.

Hapag-Lloyd said 1,000 of the new 40-foot units will be manufactured at San Antonio in Chile, and therefore will be supplied by Maersk Container Industry. The shipping line confirmed to WorldCargo News that these will be the 1,000 controlled atmosphere units.

MCI has been emphasising that sourcing reefers in Chile opens up an opportunity to save on repositioning costs when the containers are new. Hapag-Lloyd noted this “saves both time and money in terms of empty transports”, and is the first time it has taken reefers from this new facility.

The merger with UASC gave Hapag-lloyd access to one of the youngest reefer fleets in the industry, and it is now looking to expand that further. “After the merger with UASC this past May, Hapag-Lloyd has once again significantly grown in the reefer market,” said Anthony J. Firmin, Chief Operating Officer at Hapag-Lloyd. “With these new orders, we are further expanding this position and investing in an efficient and modern fleet as well as in the expansion of our most recent product, ExtraFresh Plus.”

This new order follows the purchase of 5,750 new reefers in October last year. This also included 1,000 controlled atmosphere units. Carrier supplied most of the reefer machinery, with Daikin delivering its Zestia system for 750 x 20-foot units.

Hapag-Lloyd is one of the shipping lines evaluating Carrier's NaturaLINE reefer, which uses CO2 as the refrigerant, but confirmed to WorldCargo News that none of the new reefers in this new order will use the system.