The collision, which happened on Saturday, occurred 120 nautical miles off Ningbo. Customers with cargo on board the Safmarine Meru have been contacted directly.

"For the Safmarine Meru, plans are being made to move this vessel to a safe location where cargo may be discharged and inspected," said Copenhagen-based Maersk Line.

Owners of the Northern Jasper, Norddeutsche Reederei NRS, said all crew onboard the Northern Jasper are safe.

"No pollution occurred on the side of Northern Jasper and the root cause of the incident is yet unknown," a press statement from NRS stated, adding that a full investigation will follow.

The company added that at the time of the incident, Northern Jasper was not on charter.

The vessel was sailing from Zhoushan shipyard with the intention to anchor in Shanghai's anchorage area, where it was to be delivered into a new charter on May 17.

Safmarine Meru, meanwhile, was sailing on a Maersk Line transpacific US Gulf Coast-Asia route, and was carrying fewer than 400 laden containers.

Chinese and Maersk officials have Line have been on board the Safmarine Meru to survey the damages and gather information needed to make plans for moving the vessel to shore. 

The vessel is without power and has suffered some water ingress, but condition is stable and it is deemed suitable for towage. 

"We are cooperating with the Chinese authorities to develop a plan to safely tow the vessel alongside in the Port of Ningbo. We will not speculate or comment on the circumstances leading to the incident while investigations are ongoing," said Maersk Line ship management chief Palle Laursen.