IN Brief:
- Contship Sky has been renewed with CMA CGM for 11–13 months at US$16,250 per day.
- Contship Way has been fixed with ONE for 21–24 months at US$16,500 per day.
- Contships reports a US$205.8m charter backlog and an unsigned financing plan for potential newbuildings.
Contships Logistics has agreed two further time charter fixtures with CMA CGM and Ocean Network Express (ONE), extending employment for feeder containerships while it develops a possible fleet renewal programme. The Greek vessel owner disclosed the contracts in financial results released on 2 November for the three and nine months to 30 September 2026, alongside fleet utilisation, charter revenue and vessel-disposal figures.
The Contship Sky has been renewed with CMA CGM at US$16,250 per day for a period of 11 to 13 months. Contship Way has been fixed with ONE at US$16,500 per day for 21 to 24 months. The company has not specified the exact commencement dates of these two arrangements, so the disclosed periods should be read as contracted durations rather than dates for new scheduled services or port calls.
Under a time charter, a liner carrier hires the use of a ship for a specified period at an agreed daily rate and can allocate that capacity across its services subject to the charter terms. Feeder vessels link major container hubs with smaller ports or regional routes that cannot economically receive the largest mainline ships. The Contship Sky and Contship Way fixtures give CMA CGM and ONE access to capacity over different contractual periods. Contships has not identified new service rotations or individual port calls arising from those charters.
Contships reports that its owned fleet comprised 27 vessels at 30 September, compared with an average of 27.5 operated during the first nine months of the year. Operational utilisation for the period was 98%, and the average daily time charter rate, net of address and brokerage commissions, was US$15,734. These operating measures describe the owner’s fleet performance rather than the capacity utilisation or cargo volumes of the liner networks using its ships.
Revenue for the first nine months reached US$129.8m, with profit of US$33.3m and cash generated from vessel operations of US$43.8m. Contships expects an average gross time charter rate of approximately US$17,050 a day for the final quarter. Its reported nine-month average of US$15,734 was calculated after address and brokerage commissions, whereas the fourth-quarter projection is gross. The different accounting bases need to be preserved when comparing rates across periods, in addition to changes in the fleet and contract mix.
The company puts secured future charter revenue at US$205.8m as at 1 October, after adjusting for subsequent fixtures and the loss of Contship Jet. The figure is calculated using each vessel’s latest anticipated redelivery date, so it measures contracted hire rather than cash already received. Contships also reports 2,419 contracted vessel days in the final three months of 2026, equivalent to 100% charter coverage for that period. That contracted employment provides near-term income visibility while the owner weighs longer-term fleet investments.
Contships had already reduced its owned fleet by selling five feeder vessels during the first nine months of 2026, receiving US$59m in aggregate gross proceeds before commissions and transaction costs. It owned 27 ships at the end of September, with an average of 27.5 ships operated during the reporting period. The later loss of Contship Jet reduced the fleet again. Contract renewals on the ships still operating help maintain employed capacity as vessel sales and casualty losses change the number of assets available for charter.
Fleet renewal discussions are proceeding separately. On 1 October, Contships signed a letter of intent with China’s Hubei Guangji Green Energy Shipbuilding Group for an initial ten 1,324 TEU feeder newbuildings, with options covering another 20 in two groups of ten. The letter identifies a potential construction programme but financing arrangements have not been finalised. The company says it is considering capital-raising alternatives with advisers, and the options would become additional capacity only if exercised and followed by vessel deliveries.
At 30 September, cash, cash equivalents and time deposits totalled US$262m, compared with US$12m of bank debt and US$200m of outstanding bonds. Contships described its consolidated position as US$50m net cash positive. Its balance sheet is relevant to financing negotiations, but the shipbuilding programme would require its own investment decision and funding structure. The company also paid a US$40m dividend in October, bringing distributions during 2026 to US$60m, while making future payouts subject to capital needs and board approval.
The reporting period was followed by a serious casualty in the Black Sea: Contship Jet was attacked on 28 October, and all 18 crew were evacuated before the vessel sank on 29 October. Contships says the ship was covered by hull and machinery, protection and indemnity, and war risk insurance, and does not expect the loss to materially weaken liquidity or its fleet renewal plans. The immediate contractual position is fixed by the newly disclosed charters; decisions on financing and ordering replacement tonnage remain to be made.
