Korea Ocean Business Corp. will be turned into a shipowner company to lend ships to South Korean shipping companies.
The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries is planning to turn Korea Ocean Business Corp. into a shipowner company to lend ships to South Korean shipping companies. The idea is to prevent another lack of vessels for export and import and maintain sufficient ship spaces by divided vessel ownership and operation.
A budget of 100 billion won is already earmarked to that end and about 10 ships are scheduled to be chartered next year for operating lease. The number is planned to be increased to 50 by 2025 and a subsidiary is slated to be set up so that a national shipowner company in which the private sector takes part can be established and run by the corporation.
The plan has to do with the ongoing shortage of cargo vessels and soaring ocean freight charges. The charge for transport from Asia to the Americas has hit an all-time high for five weeks in a row and jumped 151 percent compared to January this year.
Source: Korea Ocean Business Corp
