Ecoship Claims Exaggerated, Says Berge Bulk CEO

by Ship & Bunker News Team
Friday September 27, 2013

James Marshall, CEO of Singapore's Berge Bulk, says ecoships now on the market are not necessarily more efficient than older vessels, industry news site SeaShip News reports.

"When we have looked at ecoships especially for larger ships some of the yards' claims are over exaggerated," he said.

Marshall said the company's 27-year-old flagship, VLOC Berge Stahl, is more efficient than many new vessels.

"Per ton carried she is more efficient than these new ships – not just because she is larger but because she was built at a time when oil prices were high," he said.

Marshall said the dry bulk carrier market is improving, although he said new ship deliveries starting in 2016 could push rates down again.

He said Berge Bulk has been buying ships secondhand as well as ordering new ships and now has 35 vessels.

"We believe in the market and the price is right," he said.

The head of another dry bulk company, Pacific Basin Shipping, said earlier this year that secondhand ships provide a better return than new ecoships.