Iceland: Samskip Acquires Two Container Vessels

Samskip has acquired the container vessels Arnarfell and Helgafell, both of which have been employed by the company on the route between Iceland and Europe since early 2005.

Samskip has been chartering the vessels since they were delivered, as new builds, seven years ago. From the beginning they have proved to be very reliable and a highly capable design for the route they serve. Both vessels have Icelandic crews, who enjoy first class accommodations.

The two 909 TEU sister vessels were built by J.J. Sietas in Hamburg and each vessel is 11.143 DWT and measures 138 meters and 21 meters in width, with maximum service speed of 18.4 knots. They are employed on a weekly sailing route between Iceland and Europe, departing from Reykjavík on a Thursday night with a stop-over in the Westman Islands on the way to Immingham. From there they call Rotterdam, Cuxhaven, Varberg, Aarhus, and the Faroese Islands, returning to Reykjavík on a Wednesday morning.

“The world market price for container vessels is favorable at the moment, so when an interesting opportunity to buy presented itself we were on board,” says Ásbjörn Gíslason, CEO of Samskip hf. in Iceland. This investment we feel is a good one not in the least as the ships were specifically designed for our needs. We also managed to secure favorable financing, which is a recognition to the companys good and strong position, and reflects the trust we enjoy. The financing was arranged by German banks.”

Samskip also invested in two new 800 TEU container vessels in 2011, also specifically designed for the company by the Dutch company Damen. They serve on routes between the Netherlands and the UK and Ireland. The purchase was Samskips first investment in container vessels for a long time.