Weather conditions prevented the inauguration ceremony for MSC's 24,000 TEU container ship, for which the Geneva-based carrier had invited a cosmopolitan array of guests. The highlight of the event, however, was the presence of a megamax in the port of Marseille Fos.

Jaws clenched in disappointment on the quayside of the Seayard terminal in Fos (port of Marseille), where a prestige tent had been erected to welcome a cosmopolitan array of guests for the inauguration of the MSC Mette, a 24,116 TEU container ship named after the wife of Søren Toft, MSC's Chief Executive Officer. A sign of elegance and an encouraging signal for the man who arrived at MSC in December 2020 to take over from Diego Aponte, who succeeded his father Gianluigi at the head of the Board of Directors.

The Geneva-based company, which keeps a firm grip on all forms of misconduct, language and communication, was nonetheless forced to relinquish its absolute control over everything in the face of the weather.

The force 7 easterly wind, as evidenced by the two containers overturned on the quay, forced MSC management, represented by Søren Toft and Philippe Lestrade, President of MSC France's cargo division, to cancel the ceremony. An Italian-style mini-farce that this company, which has only recently started communicating, could have done without. But at MSC, the safety of guests is no laughing matter.

24,116 containers

In any case, the highlight of the event was the presence of a megamax in the port of Marseille.

The 41-knot swells weren't strong enough to swallow up this 230,757 GT steel monster, bordered by two port tugs and symbolically loaded with 24,116 empty containers stamped with the brand logo.

The 399 m long, 61 m wide vessel, which accommodates 24 rows of containers lengthwise and widthwise, arrived at Fos on October 21 from Gioia Tauro, and is due to set sail again in the next few days for Shanghai, where it is scheduled to arrive on December 7.

Reflecting the sector's current difficulties, the container ship will take the historic long-distance route, bypassing Africa without passing through the Suez Canal, and at the reduced speed of 11.5 knots (compared with its service speed of 22.5 knots).

Once in China, he is expected to be commercially inactive for an undefined time, pending the assignment of his department.

In-haul freight rate

The last quarter of the year is a tough one for the container sector. Average spot rates from Shanghai to Northern Europe fell last week for the eleventh consecutive week, to $1,124 per 40-foot container, according to the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI). This represents a 42% drop since the end of July. Spot rates are now at their lowest level for six years.

After cancelling five sailings that MSC and Maersk jointly operate between Asia and Northern Europe during and after the Golden Week vacations, the two 2M alliance partners have renewed cancellations from the end of October (week 43) until the first half of December (week 49) to remedy the irremediable erosion of freight rates.

Departure cancellations have so far failed to alleviate the pressure on spot freight rates due to demand shocked by the prevailing economic climate and oversupply.

Not the largest in the MSC fleet

At 24,116 TEU, the MSC Mette, registered under the Liberian flag and manned by a crew of 26 sailors (all Ukranians except for one Pole), is not the largest in the Italian-Swiss carrier's fleet. Yangzijiang Shipbuilding has just delivered the MSC Micol (24,346 TEU), sistership to the MSC Turkiye, delivered in August.

Owned and financed by a Chinese leasing company (ICBC), the MSC Mette was delivered at the end of July by the Jiangnan shipyard of the Chinese shipbuilding group CSSC, one month after the MSC Nicola Mastro, delivered by one of the group's other shipyards, Hudong Zhonghua. She is the sixth in a series of eight vessels to be delivered to MSC by CSSC this year.

Conventional motorization

Like all vessels in this series, the container ship is powered by a WinGD main engine, fuelled by conventional fuel (VLSFO) and configured for LNG.

Energy for temperature-controlled cargo is supplied by 2,026 refrigeration outlets. It is equipped with a single scrubber to treat all discharges from the main stack, and features shore power (cold ironing).

The ship began her career on the Dragon service, launched solo by MSC in February between Asia and the Mediterranean, and returned to Marseille Fos with the first call of the MSC Sola on April 17, three years after she first appeared on the radar.

If the MSC Nicola Mastro and Mette were to become permanent fixtures, they would be the largest in this service.

Carbon philosophy

In terms of carbon neutrality, the group has been slow to put a date on its climate agenda, committing in September 2021 to the complete decarbonization of its fleet by 2050.

In several of his speeches, Søren Toft expressed skepticism about the 2050 decarbonization deadline and the targets for achieving a carbon-neutral world fleet. It was also Søren Toft who, on his arrival, announced the first order for eleven LNG-powered 15,300 TEU vessels. However, the shipowner went ahead with a measured and controlled risk, via long-term charter contracts and "LNG ready" motorization.

In an interview with the Financial Times, MSC's boss was outspoken about the EU's "plans" to reduce carbon emissions, rightly believing that they would be counterproductive if low-carbon fuels were not readily available.

Carbon tax

He also supported the introduction of market-based mechanisms, notably carbon taxation, but without setting a price per tonne of CO2, which would be necessary to be a sufficient deterrent.

Søren Toft is also one of the proponents of an R&D fund with NGO status supervised by IMO member states, financed by a compulsory contribution per tonne of fuel, to speed up technological breakthroughs.

To consolidate its global leadership

Since reaching the top spot in January 2021, MSC has consolidated its position as the world's leading container carrier by multiplying orders and second-hand purchases. Its order book of 125 ships is by far the largest in the sector, at 1.5 MEVP.

This year, MSC alone is scheduled to take delivery of 14 megamax and 22 neopanamax.

Adeline Descamps