Mitsui O.S.K. Orders Five Containerships

Japan's Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd. (MOL) has ordered three 6,000-TEU containerships from Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries Co. (IHI). Both companies declined to comment on the contract terms, but industry sources estimate a such vessel would cost over five billion yen. MOL also placed an order for two 6,000-TEU container ships with unlisted Japanese shipbuilder Imabari Shipbuilding Co Ltd, it said in a statement. The five new vessels with a service speed of 25.5 knots, to be deployed in the company's trans-Pacific services, will replace its current 2,800 TEU vessels in 2002.