Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC) has wrapped up another busy spell in the secondhand market, underlining the carrier’s continued push to bulk up its fleet.
The Geneva-based liner giant is understood to have bought at least eight container vessels in December alone, with market sources suggesting more deals may still be waiting to surface. Alphaliner said it is aware of additional transactions that have yet to be fully confirmed.
Among the purchases is a 14,700 teu newbuilding resale from BAL Container Line, priced at around $170m. The ship is under construction at Jiangnan Shipyard in China and is due for delivery in the fourth quarter of 2026. It is the third resale MSC has picked up from BAL, following two similar deals in July 2024. Alphaliner suggests a fourth unit in the same series could also end up with MSC, although this remains unconfirmed.
MSC has also been active in the classic panamax segment, snapping up five vessels of that type. These include the 5,028 teu Antwerp Bridge, the 4,738 teu sisters Beijing Bridge and Grace Bridge, and the 2,754 teu Port Klang Voyager, acquired from Sinokor. The 2005 Hyundai Heavy Industries-built Antwerp Bridge was originally delivered as Westerbrook to Germany’s NOO Reederei H. Peterson.
Further deals include the purchase of the 4,256 teu Lisa from Idan Ofer-backed XT Shipping, a similar-sized unit, the 4,253 teu Ts Ningbo from TS Lines, and the 2,824 teu As Clementina from MPC Container Ships.
MSC’s buying spree comes against the backdrop of another year of strong fleet growth. According to Alphaliner data, MSC added 831,400 teu of capacity in 2025, accounting for 39% of the combined growth recorded by the world’s 12 largest container carriers. The carrier’s fleet expanded by 11.7% over the year, widening the gap with second-ranked Maersk to about 2.5m teu, up from 1.9m teu a year earlier.
While newbuild deliveries remained the main driver of growth — with MSC taking delivery of 54 new vessels, adding nearly 700,000 teu — continued secondhand acquisitions have played a key supporting role in keeping the Aponte family-controlled group firmly in expansion mode.
