Taiwan's Evergreen Marine has placed an order at CSSC Huangpu Wenchong Shipbuilding for the construction of 24 feeder containerships in a deal worth up to $1.1bn.

The deal includes ships of three different sizes, 11 3,000 TEU, 11 2,300 TEU, and a pair of 1,800 TEU units with a price tag between $28m and $51m.

Evergreen has a history of ordering extensive series at a single yard, but even by its standards, this is an extraordinary number of newbuilds to place in one go.

The latest order ensures the Taiwanese carrier has the second-largest orderbook in the world after Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC).