Norwegian shipping company Wallenius Wilhelmsen has signed a transport agreement with an undisclosed large Swedish manufacturing company. The new agreement is for three years, with an option for two years extension, and has a total value of approximately $300 million, based on expected shipments over the three years.
Wallenius Wilhelmsen said the contract took effect from January 2024, with the rates reportedly in sync with the existing market conditions. As part of the new agreement, the company is discussing strategic decarbonisation measures with its customers in the short and long term as part of its commitment to sustainability.
Notably, this is the second large transport contract announced by Wallenius Wilhelmsen this week. In news on Wednesday (31 January), Wallenius Wilhelmsen announced that it had signed two contracts worth a total of more than US$1.2 billion with an unnamed global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment and one of the largest automotive dealerships in the Americas, with contracts valued at US$1 billion and US$200 million respectively.
Wallenius Wilhelmsen has revealed that both contracts made public on 31 January include direct support for Wallenius Wilhelmsen’s decarbonisation programme, such as the use of biofuels, technical and operational improvements to the existing fleet and the development of new technologies. Currently, the company is assessing the feasibility of HSFO biofuel blends and ultra-low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) biofuel blends in Asia as part of its strategy to decarbonise the global deep-sea trade.
Wallenius Wilhelmsen is understood to have signed a contract with China Merchants Jinling Shipyard in October 2023 for the construction of 4+8 9,350 CEU methanol dual-fuel car and truck carriers (PCTC). Delivery of the first four new vessels is scheduled to start in mid-2026. The vessels are being developed by Wallenius Wilhelmsen in co-operation with the ship design company Deltamarin and will be named “Shaper” class.