Li Du looked at the information. This was indeed a major auction.
The auction was held on a freighter called the Zhang Baogao, a super-large Panama-class freighter with a length of 300 meters, a width of 43 meters, and a height of 14.5 meters.
The classification of freighters was very strict, divided into ordinary container class, full container class, Panamax class, Panamax class, super Panamax class, super Panamax class, new Panamax class, and 3E class.
This division was based on the number of containers that the ship itself could hold, the load, the length, the width, and the depth of the draft. Although the super Panamax class was not the top freighter, it was still very exaggerated, as could be seen from its size.
Li Du looked at the grass outside the window and thought about the area of 300 meters long and more than 40 meters wide, which was quite exaggerated for a ship.
Even more exaggerated was the number of containers at the auction, a total of 2,500!
In fact, this was not a lot. The standard load of a super-large Panama-class freighter was 8,000 containers, and 2,500 containers was only a small part of it.
When the Zhang Baogao left the port, there were 8,000 containers, but the boxes were not full, and there were still a lot of empty space. This was the reason why the Korean Trade Group went bankrupt. The industry had not been doing well in recent years.
Normally, when a freighter left the port, the proportion of empty containers should be less than 20%, and these 20% of empty containers would be reloaded at the port halfway.
In short, a well-run shipping company would not have such a terrible proportion of empty containers.
The Korean Trade Group shipped a large number of empty containers out of the port to reduce the amount of compensation in the bankruptcy liquidation. Their executives had known at the time that these ships would not be able to enter the port again after leaving the port.
Li Du read some reports about recent shipping information. When the Zhang Baogao left the port, it had aroused doubts. The ship was almost empty, which was simply burning money.
The Korean Trade Group explained that their ship was mainly used to transport vehicles. It was loaded with about 1,400 family cars, including 1,100 Hyundai, 100 Ssangyong, and 100 Gemini, worth more than 50 million dollars.
In fact, of course, there were no such things. After the insurance company arranged for personnel to board the ship, there were indeed some cars, but they were all second-hand. There was no market for such cars in the United States, and they were completely useless to them.
They had also checked the containers and arranged for a professional company to evaluate the value of the items in the containers. After some calculations and screening, they felt that storage auctions were the most suitable way to deal with the items.
The auction would take place in early February and would last for three days. More than 2,000 containers would be auctioned in secret. After the treasure hunters boarded the ship, they could view it and bid as they pleased. Three days later, the insurance company would collect the bids.
Li Du looked at the time. After the auction, he could still return to his hometown for the New Year, so it would not delay him much. The timing of the two events coincided, which made him feel pretty good.
After waiting for a while, it was finally time for the auction at sea. They would set off from the Port of Seattle and take a yacht all the way west to the Pacific Ocean. The Zhang Baogao was docked there.
So before attending the auction, they had to go to Seattle.
Seattle was one of the largest cities in the far north of the United States. It belonged to the state of Washington, near Oregon and Canada at the back.
The city had risen to prominence 30 or 40 years ago. Before that, it was just a second-tier city until it combined bold innovation and flamboyant personality. With the help of the global Internet age, it became the largest city in the northwest of the United States.
Before the development of the Internet, Seattle's pillar industry was the shipping industry. It was the second largest container port in the United States and the closest port to the Far East. Many shipping businesses in the Far East originated from here.
Two days before the auction, Li Du took a helicopter to Seattle.
The insurance company was very stingy. Including the three days of the auction and one day before and after, they only provided five days of accommodation for the invited customers.
Li Du rejected the accommodation after looking at the conditions. The insurance company was so stingy that they actually provided them with a three-star hotel.
He asked Lu Guan to book a five-star hotel. It was not easy to come to Seattle, so there was no need to treat himself too harshly.
Bill Shoreton had entered the storage auction industry very early on. In his impression, attending auctions in other places was a process of being homeless and making ends meet.
This time, he followed Li Du to Seattle to attend the auction, and everything began to change his perception.
First of all, they did not come here by truck, but by helicopter.
As they boarded the helicopter, he asked blankly, "Boss, are we not driving the truck?"
Li Du said, "Why drive the truck? If we take down the container, how much can our truck carry with the size of the container? If we don't get anything, won't the truck come for nothing? Anyway, it's better not to drive. "
The helicopter took off quickly, flew from Los Angeles to the ocean, and sped along the coastline all the way to Seattle.
After flying to Seattle, the helicopter went to Pioneer Square and landed on the top floor of a luxury hotel.
Bill was surprised again. "We're not staying here, are we?"
Li Du did not know where to stay. He pointed to Lu Guan, meaning that he had arranged it.
Lu Guan puffed out his chest and said, "Boss, I chose the Western Park Hotel. This is the oldest and most famous hotel in the Pioneer Square area. You will be satisfied."
Li Du nodded. "No need to be satisfied, as long as we can survive."
Bill's mouth was wide open. He knew about the Western Park Hotel. The cheapest room in this hotel was four to five hundred dollars a night, and it was one of the best hotels in the Northwest region of the United States. He did not expect that they would choose to stay in such a high-end hotel for a storage auction.
Playboy, who had also received an invitation, was with Li Du. He was a prospective member of the Million Dollar Club, had a high net worth, and was quite famous in the Arizona treasure hunter circle.
Playboy saw the change in Bill's expression. He adjusted his clothes and smiled. "You scared your buddy."
Hearing this, Bill was worried that he would embarrass Li Du, so he waved his hand and said, "No, no, no, Akkalou, I'm not scared, I'm just a little surprised. God, we're here to attend the auction! "
Li Du nodded. "Yes, we're doing auction business that's worth tens of millions, so what's the problem with staying here?"
Bill's mouth opened and closed a few times, and he said helplessly, "Others have problems, but not you, boss."
When Li Du attended auctions in other places, regardless of food or accommodation, he had never wronged himself. From the first time he went out, Hans would arrange food and accommodation for him.
The hotel that Lu Guan had found was very good, but it did not satisfy Li Du. He still liked Hans's arrangements. Hans could always find places that were not famous but full of local customs and culture.
Hans was someone who truly understood his needs. Li Du did not come to these places simply to eat and live well. More importantly, he wanted to broaden his horizons.
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