Chinese company Guoyou Materials is developing a project to construct a multifunctional port complex in Kuryk on the eastern coast of the Caspian Sea. The project’s investment volume is estimated at $1.1 billion, with the port positioned as a key logistics hub linking China – the Caspian region – the Caucasus – Europe as part of the Middle Corridor development.

Construction is scheduled to begin in 2026, with full commercial operations expected by 2028. The project includes the development of a modern transshipment cluster featuring seven berths, warehouse and logistics facilities, rail and road access, as well as digital cargo management solutions, including TOS systems and EDI integration.

The designed capacity of the first phase will reach up to 180,000 TEU of container cargo per year, up to 180,000 vehicles, and approximately 2–3 million tons of bulk cargo. The port is expected to significantly strengthen the transit potential of the Caspian region and enhance the role of the Middle Corridor in Eurasian logistics.

China’s first vacuum-based automatic mooring system has been put into operation at the Port of Qingdao, reducing mooring time to just 30 seconds compared with 20–30 minutes using conventional methods. The system began operating on January 1 at a fully automated container terminal and was first used during the berthing of the 366-meter-long container vessel MSC Saudi Arabia. Mooring is carried out without human involvement: vacuum modules secure the vessel’s hull directly to the quay, eliminating the need for mooring lines. The system consists of 13 modules installed along the berth and is designed to handle container ships longer than 200 meters. According to port authorities, the technology is expected to reduce total berth time by more than 200 hours per year, equivalent to handling over ten additional vessel calls at a single berth. Beyond productivity gains, the key benefit lies in improved industrial safety, as removing manual operations in mooring zones significantly reduces risks for port workers. The project further strengthens Qingdao’s role as a benchmark site for scaling intelligent port technologies across China.

In 2025, shipping lines ordered around 600 new container vessels, up 42% year-on-year compared with 2024 (413 ships). This marks the second-highest order volume on record, according to Veson Nautical.

The figure is given as an estimate, as some contracts are still in the final confirmation stage. Still, the trend is clear: despite high newbuilding prices, regulatory uncertainty, and the lack of clarity around future fuels, carriers continue to invest heavily in fleet expansion.

Order activity in 2025 was supported by steady container demand, growth in global trade, and longer sailing distances caused by diversions around the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, which temporarily absorbed available fleet capacity.

At the same time, the orderbook structure is shifting. The market is moving away from ultra-large vessels toward more flexible ship sizes. The main focus is on Post-Panamax ships, with 213 orders placed (+53% YoY). These vessels are seen as a “sweet spot”: suitable for East–West trades without the infrastructure constraints faced by ULCVs.

Where the ships were ordered:

China accounted for about 78% of all orders (around 468 vessels), driven by pricing, scale, and shipbuilding capacity. South Korea took roughly 19%, focusing on more complex and alternative-fuel projects.

Who placed the orders:

China led among buyers with 159 vessels (including Hong Kong and Taiwan), followed by Singapore with 70 orders (+43%). European shipowners remained selective, prioritising technology over volume.

Veson Nautical cautions that after 2026, supply growth may begin to outpace demand. If Suez transits normalize, ton-mile demand could decline, increasing pressure on freight rates.

The surge in new container ship orders placed at Chinese shipyards is not driven by expectations of global trade growth. Instead, it reflects how carriers are preparing for a long-term fragmented world.

According to Linerlytica, container ship orders reached a record 5.08 million TEU in 2025, with 72% of that volume contracted in China — an all-time high. This is not a cyclical upswing, but a strategic shift.

The experience of the pandemic and recent geopolitical conflicts has exposed the vulnerability of highly optimized global supply chains. The industry is moving away from pure efficiency toward resilience, even at the cost of higher operating expenses. Carriers are no longer betting on a full normalization of routes such as the Suez Canal and are planning for the permanent use of alternative corridors.

The current orderbook already equals 31–32% of the active global fleet, the highest level since 2010. Traditional market analysis views this as a risk of overcapacity and potential freight rate pressure through the end of the decade. However, shipping lines increasingly see newbuilds as buffer capacity for a world with parallel and partially disconnected trade systems.

A structural transformation is underway. A single global network is being replaced by a segmented fleet — serving different trade blocs, sanction-compatible and non-compatible flows, and divergent regulatory and environmental regimes. The dominance of dual-fuel vessels (LNG, methanol) reflects not only decarbonization goals, but also the need to operate across fragmented regulatory frameworks.

The concentration of orders in China is strengthening mutual dependence. South Korea and Japan currently offer no comparable alternatives in terms of scale, pricing, or delivery capacity. Despite ongoing discussions about “decoupling,” Western carriers remain dependent on Chinese shipbuilding. Some lines are accelerating orders to hedge against potential future restrictions on access to Chinese yards, while strong current profitability allows contracts to be secured in advance.

Conclusion: carriers are not building fleets for a return to the old globalization model. They are investing in the infrastructure of a new trade order — defined by redundancy, parallel networks, and strategic flexibility rather than maximum efficiency.

Discussions around a possible sale of Zim are facing increasing opposition, particularly regarding the option of acquisition by Hapag-Lloyd. Worker representatives cite the strategic importance of Zim for the country’s trade and highlight the involvement of foreign investors among Hapag-Lloyd’s shareholders.

The process is further complicated by a special state share issued by the Israeli government in 2004 during the company’s privatization. Under its conditions:

- any buyer seeking to acquire more than 24% of shares must notify the Israeli authorities;

- acquiring over 35% requires formal approval from Israel;

- the company must remain registered in Israel;

- a majority of board members — including the chairperson and the CEO — must be Israeli citizens;

Zim must maintain a fleet of at least 11 vessels, with at least three of them being cargo ships, although the company currently has permission to operate a smaller fleet; any liquidation, merger or corporate restructuring requires written approval from the Israeli government, unless the special share remains active.

For reference, the major shareholders of Hapag-Lloyd include private and state-affiliated investors from Germany, Chile, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.