While uncertainty
about the future of slow steaming remains, so far it
would appear that average operating speeds have
not increased, owing probably to the slower design
speed of eco-ships and the risk for profitability. Faster
speeds are likely to liberate excess capacity back
into some shipping markets and therefore undermine
the fundamentals of the market and the profitability
(Lloyd’s List, 2015a). It was noted that if carriers were,
for example, to speed up their services to remove one
week from transit times on the Asia–Europe container
route, they would be adding 2.5 per cent to the
existing capacity on the route (Lloyd’s List, 2015b).
To put this in perspective and based on information