Vessel Choice Justification for Chartering On a Time-Charter Basis, Considering Feasibility for Oversized Cargo Shipment

Abstract

In shipping practice, there are often situations when bulk carriers or container ships engaging for transportation of oversized project cargoes despite the fact that type, design and constructional features of these vessels are not convenient and optimal for such kind of transportation. In most cases, in order adapt non-specialized vessels for the transportation of heavy and oversized cargoes, special researches are required which are aimed at optimizing the loading process, stowage techniques and securing arrangements of the cargo, assessing the seaworthiness, strength, stability and safety of the vessel. In some cases, it may be necessary to justify additional measures concerned at modernizing, reconstructing or strengthening the structural elements of the vessel. Typically, such measures are associated with additional costs and increased delivery time. However, in some cases deploy of non-specialized vessels is more expedient from an economic point of view than the use of specialized ones. This is due to the specifics of the development of the global economy and the geography of freight distribution. Thus, the countries of Southeast Asia are one of the world's largest importers of bulk cargo, as well as exporters of significant volumes of project cargo. Therefore, it is quite complicated for bulk carriers delivered bulk commodities to China or Korea to find appropriate cargo on a way back and they forced to return ballasted. Although most of these vessels are not suitable for carriage of oversized and heavy project cargoes, in some cases it may economically attractive to use these vessels for transportation of project cargo than to perform ballast passage. In view of above, very relevant area of research is the development and improvement of methods to increase the efficiency of shipping in areas where the structure of cargo flows is heterogeneous. One of the possible measures aimed at improving the economic efficiency of shipping, is to slow down the ship’s speed. In such way while choosing a vessel for use in the conditions of available cargo flow, the actual benefit that can be received due to the optimum choice of the vessel’s speed mode. The aim of this work is to develop a methodology for substantiating the choice of vessels for chartering on a time charter basis, taking into account the possibility of their operation for transportation of oversized project cargo and work at slow speeds.