Worries among mainland shipowners that a raft of giant iron ore carriers entering service over the next three years would hurt the dry bulk shipping market are not as great as the threat of overcapacity, shipowners said.
They said the 400,000 deadweight tonne (dwt) bulk carriers ordered by Brazilian iron ore giant Vale would create opportunities for smaller dry cargo ships shuttling iron ore from Malaysia to other ports in Asia.
They said Vale and other industrial shipowners, such as Rio Tinto, could sell and leaseback their shipping fleets to traditional shipowners as they realise shipping is not their main business. 'People are very worried about the large vessels, but I don't think they are too big a threat,' said Dale Ploughman, chief executive of Seanergy Maritime Holdings, which controls Hong Kong shipping firm Maritime Capital Shipping.
Vale was planning to establish an iron ore distribution hub in Malaysia that would be served by some of the nineteen 400,000 dwt ore carriers ordered by Vale from China Rongsheng Heavy Industries and Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering, Ploughman said.
Vale would eventually sell its ships which cost about US$1.6 billion, he said. 'Not now, because there is too much money on the table,' Ploughman said. Vale has also chartered 16 vessels from international shipowners, including four 388,000 dwt large ore carriers from Berge Bulk, the dry bulk offshoot of the BW Group.
Berge Bulk took delivery of the first vessel, called Berge Everest, from Bohai Shipbuilding Heavy Industry last month.
The China Shipowners Association warned earlier this year that Vale and other mining firms intended to monopolise or control most of the China-bound iron ore shipments by owning their own ships. 'If those mining giants monopolised China-bound iron ore transportation, it would severely hurt the Chinese shipping community,' said Zhang Shouguo, the Association's executive vice-president and secretary general.
