In the corporate bucket, COSCO Shipping Holdings has committed another RMB20.27 billion, about $2.99 billion, to 18 new containerships. The latest package lifts its boxship orders during 2026 to 48 vessels and roughly $8 billion of investment.
The order includes 12 ships with capacity of 22,000 teu at Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding and six feeder vessels with capacity of 3,200 teu at Huangpu Wenchong. The larger ships will use LNG dual fuel propulsion, while the feeders use a wide beam design for regional trades. Together they add 283,200 teu of nominal capacity.
COSCO began the year with 12 LNG dual fuel ships of 18,000 teu and six conventional fuel feeders, then added another 12 LNG dual fuel ships through Orient Overseas International in April. Across the three rounds, the group has ordered about 676,800 teu of capacity, including 36 LNG dual fuel vessels representing almost 640,000 teu.
The spending places a large block of capacity into the delivery pipeline while deepening the company’s use of LNG propulsion. For shipyards, equipment suppliers, ports and liner rivals, the scale of the order points to sustained capital investment in very large ships and feeder networks despite uncertainty over future freight demand.