China Shipping Container Lines (CSCL), through its wholly-owned CSCL HK, has confirmed a bareboat charter deal over six 21,000 teu containerships to be built at Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding (SWS).

China Shipping Group’s CSCL announced earlier that it planned to bareboat charter up to 11 units of 21,000 teu containerships, of which five will be options exercisable after six months of charter for the first six ships.

The owner of the containerships is China Shipping Nauticgreen Holdings Company, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of CSG.

CSCL announced that the charter hire for each of the vessel is $41,000 per day for the charter period of 12 years.

“The charter hire is determined by reference to the market freight rates for liners in the Far East and Europe trade lanes during the past five years (2010 to 2014),” CSCL said, adding that it expects to generate profits from the vessel charters.

“The group adheres to low-carbon environmental protection initiatives, positively responds to the current development trend for large-scale container vessels in the shipping market, and is committed to adjusting and optimising the structure of its fleet,” CSCL stated.

“The vessel charter will further help optimise the group’s fleet structure, maintain a reasonable proportion between the self-owned vessels and leased vessels of the group, and enhance the group’s comprehensive competitiveness,” it said.

The mega-sized containerships are to be designed by the 708 Research Institute of China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC), and will be jointly classed by China Classification Society (CSSC) and Lloyd’s Register (LR).

The shipbuilder SWS, subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), has been focusing on building large containerships. In September, it won an order to construct three 19,000 teu boxships for China Cosco Holdings, and in May it clinched a contract to build six 11,000 teu ships for an European shipowner.

Back in 2013, SWS secured orders to build three 18,000 teu containerships for France’s CMA CGM.