MTT Shipping says will hit 10,000 TEUs after getting two new vessels

GEORGE TOWN: MTT Shipping is expecting to get two new vessels in the third quarter of 2015, which will enable the company to ship 10,000 TEUs (twenty-feet equivalent units) of cargo monthly.

MTT group chairman Datuk Kenny Ong (pic) said the vessels would increase the cargo vessels owned by the group to eight.

“These vessels will replace the two chartered vessels, which will be phased out,” Ong said.

Ong declined to say how much the two vessels cost.

“Depending on the size, a typical cargo vessel cost around US$8mil,” he added.

He spoke after the launching the inaugural voyage of MV MTT to Penang Port by Penang Port Commission chairman Tan Sri Dr Chua Soi Lek.

“MTT Shipping is today not just the largest domestic operator but also the largest container operator in Malaysia.

“And recently, we were ranked number 70 in the world by Alphaliner,” he said.

Ong said MV MTT is a Japanese-built geared container ship with a nominal capacity of 1,157 TEUs.

“It is one of the larger container ships deployed in the West-East Malaysia domestic trade,” he added.

Meanwhile, Chua said over the past 12 months, the North Butterworth Container Terminal (NBCT) had made substantial progress, delivering crane activities of 27 moves per hour.“This represents a 30% improvement, resulting in faster turnaround of vessels in the port,” he said.