Hamburg-based Hapag-Lloyd further expanding container fleet

7 June 2021

Shipping company adds 210,000 standard containers to fleet amid rising demand

Hapag-Lloyd is to add 210,000 20-foot standard containers (TEU) to its fleet this year, a press release said Friday (May 28, 2021). This comes amid a marked increase for containers in the wake of the pandemic, congestion in ports and delays in hinterland traffic worldwide. Containers are currently en route far longer.

Response to increased container demand

Hapag-Lloyd announced orders for 150,000 TEU containers in April with another 60,000 TEU now following. "Demand continues to be very high, and the provision of container equipment is currently one of the biggest challenges facing our industry and demands our greatest attention," said Rolf Habben Jansen, CEO of Hapag-Lloyd. The company has invested in its container fleet to fight the shortage since the pandemic broke out, he added.

Around 2.8 million standard containers available

Hapag-Lloyd is one of the world's leading liner shipping companies with a fleet of 241 container ships and a total transport capacity of 1.7 million TEU. The company has around 13,300 employees in 131 countries in 400 branches. It has an estimated container fleet of 2.8 million TEU, the company added.

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