Breakbulk News

Rapid urbanization and strong economic growth are driving project cargo volumes in India, although heavier cargoes are becoming harder to handle due to port equipment and infrastructure limitations.

Healthy demand for “sophisticated” multipurpose vessels is being undercut by a sluggish market for standard MPVs.

A 10-ship order and the acquisition of MPV carrier ForestWave will increase Spliethoff’s fleet to 155 ships by 2029.

The record order book for car carriers comes amid forecasts of falling global production of light vehicles, a key driver of roll-on/roll-off vessel demand.

Container lines are contracting directly with perishables shippers, undercutting volume brokers, but the specialized reefer fleet is hanging on to niche markets as a handful of ports pivot toward dockside cold storage.

Should a strike occur — and if it continues for an extended period — one possible outcome is the spillover of container cargo into breakbulk vessels, similar to the scenario that played out in response to supply chain bottlenecks during the pandemic.

The MPV sector is seeing a period of stability in charter rates and cargo demand after a period of intense routing disruptions linked to the militant attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea.

Multipurpose carriers are reluctant to invest in newbuildings for several reasons, including uncertainty around the availability of carbon-neutral fuels for tramp shipping.

EPCs report revenue gains and hefty project backlogs as manufacturing and traditional and alternative energy projects gain momentum.

A Journal of Commerce analysis reveals that the average age of MPVs now trading globally is rapidly approaching 20 years, with almost 12% of vessels 25 years or older.

Most of the recent interest from shippers is for mode-malleable cargo — freight that can be easily switched between breakbulk and container modes.

While manufacturers remain optimistic for the longer term thanks to hefty order backlogs, they have faced recent headwinds in the form of project slowdowns, rising interest rates, higher commodity costs and, in some cases, defective turbines.

Ports along the US Gulf are beefing up infrastructure, equipment, capacity and dock strength to handle king-sized onshore turbines.

Major roll-on/roll-off carriers reported climbing net rates in the first half even as demand for machinery and rolling stock faltered and a congested shipping market tightened capacity.

Project slowdowns ease pressure on heavy transport service providers and the breakbulk supply chain, injecting realism into schedules, but a buoyant outlook could mask signs of stress, executives say.

An “unbroken faith” in the underlying strength of the breakbulk market is pushing up indices and bolstering the optimism of multipurpose carriers, analysts say.

The latest iteration of the multipurpose sentiment index reveals short-term optimism and little relief in sight for longer-term capacity pressures.

Weaker demand, congestion and supply chain disruptions held back volumes at two of Europe’s largest breakbulk ports during the first six months of the year.

A 458-ton cold box, one of 24 heavy-haul transports bound for Intel’s newest chip plant, is inching its way across Ohio after a year-plus of planning.

The deal marks MSC’s return to the booming car carrier market that it exited in March 2023 when it sold its two vehicle carriers to focus on transporting vehicles in containers.

Automobile shipments, especially electric vehicles from China, are strong, while high container rates and capacity shortages are pushing breakbulk, project cargo and equipment shippers toward the ro/ro sector.

Spillover talk is surfacing, but a shift has yet to materialize at Port Houston while oil and gas-related steel demand is on the downswing as rig counts drop.

Multipurpose vessel (MPV) charter rates are rising as tight capacity due to diversions away from the Red Sea, port congestion and higher spot rates prompt shippers to shift containerized cargo to MPVs.

After navigating the 2019 implosion of Zeamarine and the tumultuous pandemic spillover market with MPV carrier UHL, Stehle will rejoin the project forwarding side of the breakbulk shipping segment as chief commercial officer of the Swiss forwarder deugro.

While Cool is “cash rich,” it is under pressure to fill the newbuild capacity it already has as well as what is scheduled to be delivered, writes analyst Richard Bright.

Brunswick could overtake Baltimore as the busiest ro/ro port in the US, at least in the short term, partly because operations at the Maryland port were severely restricted following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in March.  

Despite sliding breakbulk volumes during the first five months of the year, there are signs that spillover cargo may reappear at the Port of New Orleans thanks to the disrupted global market.

Trade disruption and related congestion, high container rates and tight capacity are pushing shippers to rethink transport modes and make early moves toward revisiting the spillover market seen during the pandemic.

Security forces preoccupied with Houthi attacks in the Red Sea and an increase in Indian Ocean shipping, thanks to ongoing route diversions, have created an opening for Somali pirates.

Often oddly shaped or very heavy, project cargo does not necessarily consume all the deadweight space on a given vessel.

Managing federal funding requires transparency, early coordination between logistics and finance, and early planning with MARAD in mind.

The March collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore piled on yet another layer of disruption, while the Sept. 30 expiration of the existing labor contract for longshore workers on the East and Gulf coasts will make shippers more nervous.

The US DOT’s latest iteration of a national multimodal freight network map presents an opportunity to pinpoint vital routes and address concerns specific to out-of-gauge and heavy-haul road transport.

The moves come as the project cargo market is set to continue its growth trajectory, supported by key sectors such as oil and gas and mining.

Deere and Caterpillar are facing a lackluster year as equipment sales soften amid lower commodity prices and market uncertainty.

Time charter equivalents and forward bookings are increasing as project-related demand strengthens and carriers continue to reroute voyages away from the Red Sea.

Roll-on/roll-off carriers Wallenius Wilhelmsen and Höegh Autoliners anticipate high auto volumes and tight capacity ahead amid Red Sea-driven diversions.

The Houston-based company expands to 30 vessels as it takes on management of six Harren Group bulkers and adds two more MPV ships to its fleet.

Project cargo shippers are pivoting and rethinking their supply chain strategies as global turmoil becomes the norm in a post-pandemic breakbulk market.

While oil and gas investment will play a large role throughout the energy transition, renewables investment will dominate by 2030, according to S&P Global.