Tag: dry bulk shipping

The political crisis in Venezuela has in general terms no significant impact on the maritime field, according to an update by the Global P&I Correspondents. The only problems reported relate to a disruption of some  bulk cargo discharge due to the unrest impacting the availability of trucks.

Freight rates for dry-bulk and container ships, carriers of most of the world’s raw materials and finished products, have experienced a decrease during the last six months, reflecting the that the global economy is slowing significantly. The measured transport costs for materials like iron ore and coal, have reduced by 47% since mid-2018, affected by the US-China trade dispute, according to Reuters.

Belgium's Port of Antwerp issued its annual figures for 2018 revealing growth in all cargo types, as well as a major wave of investments. With a growth of 5.2% compared to 2017, the forecasts for a 6th consecutive year record were confirmed. The total transshipment in 2018 was 235.2 million tonnes.

The St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation announced, on January 17, that tonnage on the waterway during the 2018 navigation season totaled 40.9 million tonnes, hitting its record as it is the highest result since 2007. Traffic increased by 7% year-one year, whereas the total vessel transits were up nearly 6%.

According to Port of Dunkirk officials, 2018's overall throughput was increased by 3% year-on-year from 50.2 million tonnes to 51.6 million tonnes. In the meantime, officials predict that 2019 will be a 'good year', as stated in a press conference that took place at Lille. Although the in cross-Channel ro-ro volumes experienced a decrease by 4%, to 15.6 million tonnes, reflecting a pre-Brexti traffic, the port's overall results were not affected.

According to port of Amsterdam's press release, the port reached a new transhipment record in 2018 with its overall transhipment reaching 82.3 million tonnes, in comparison to the 81.3 million tonnes in 2017. The port along with other ports in the North Sea Canal Area, the total transhipment amounted to 101.8 million tonnes in 2018. 

Rising exports from India and Thailand are expected to partly replace Brazilian sugar in Asia and the Middle East. This could damage tonne-mile demand in the dry bulk market, Drewry reports. The increase of oil prices make Brazil divert more sugarcane in comparison to ethanol production.

Cargo hold cleaning constitutes one critical aspect of the complex bulk carrier operations. A conventional bulk carrier may transport coal this week and soya beans the next week, which requires thorough wash-downs and cleaning. In this regard, Danish shipping company Norden announced it has tested a cargo hold robot which can be remotely operated to prevent risk and delays. 

Bulk carriers constitute a significant fragment of the global maritime transport of goods, making up 15–17% of the world's merchant fleets. Bulk carrier operations require careful planning and preparation to maintain cargo quality as is and to avoid any delays and disputes. One critical aspect of this preparation is the cargo hold cleaning.

In the first three quarters of 2018, total throughput in the Port of Rotterdam was 0.4% less than in the same period the previous year. However, container volumes continued to grow at a higher pace than the first nine months of 2017. On the other hand, wet and dry bulk declined in volume.