HONOLULU - Matson Navigation Company's Company's new 712-foot containership MV Manukai arrived October 5 in Honolulu on its inaugural voyage. The vessel is the first new containership built for Hawaii in the 21st century and is the first new build to enter the Matson fleet since the MV R. J. Pfeiffer in 1992. The ship has the capacity to carry 2,600 containers (twenty foot equivalent units) and will be deployed in Matson's Hawaii service between Long Beach and Honolulu. It is the first of two new Matson containerships being built at Kvaerner Philadelphia Shipyard, Inc. (KPSI) at a cost of $110 million each. The second vessel, MV Maunawili, is scheduled to be delivered in mid-2004. The Manukai, along with its sistership, has been designed to meet Hawaii's current and future market requirements. Foremost among those requirements is the additional capacity for large container sizes, such as 40, 45 and even 53-foot boxes. The vessel is also equipped with enough generator capacity to support the refrigerated container requirements of the Hawaii trade. Other features include a more fuel-efficient diesel engine, modern shipboard technology and a number of "green" environmentally friendly design elements. "This new ship will help ensure that Matson continues to provide Hawaii with efficient, dependable ocean transportation services of superior quality and value," said Jim Andrasick, Matson president and chief executive officer. "This significant investment also underscores our long-term commitment to remaining the state's leading ocean carrier. Most importantly, it has been designed and built specifically for our Hawaii service customers and will meet the current demands of our market."

The ship was christened in July at KPSI by Margaret Inouye, wife of Senator Daniel K. Inouye of Hawaii. Margaret Inouye's participation in the ceremony had a special significance in that she christened Matson's S.S. Hawaiian Enterprise in 1969, which was later renamed Manukai. At the time, the ship was the largest and most powerful containership under the U.S. flag. While in service, the ship completed over 700 voyages and carried over a million containers of cargo - a record for the Hawaii trade. In addition to being a good match for the Matson fleet, the KPSI ships provide the company with a unique opportunity to purchase high quality, U.S.-built Jones Act vessels at a relatively low cost. The Manukai is the first new ship to be built at the Philadelphia shipyard - and the first vessel to be built at the site in 34 years. The shipyard received initial financial support from the Philadelphia Shipyard Development Corporation (PSDC), the Delaware River Port Authority (DRPA), the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and the City of Philadelphia with the objective of rebuilding the former Philadelphia Naval Yard as a world class commercial shipyard. Under the agreement between Matson and KPSI, both parties will realize important benefits. Kvaerner will be able to establish itself as a major U.S. shipyard. In turn, Matson is able to purchase the two new ships at a cost well below other U.S. shipyards. For more information about the Manukai, visit Matson's "Birth of a Ship" Web site at www.matson.com/bos. Matson is a wholly owned subsidiary of Alexander & Baldwin, Inc. of Honolulu (NASDAQ: ALEX).