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https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/27432/critical-issues-in-transportation-for-2024-and-beyond

TERMINAL FACILITIES FOR VERY LARGE CRUDE CARRIERS

Back in the mid 1960's the oil and shipping worlds were planning the next generation of crude carrier, the 150,000 tonners plus. However, in June 1967 the closure of the Suez Canal wrecked these well thought out projects and forced both owners and oil companies to make their plans a reality as fast as possible. The shortage of tonnage created by the Canal closure ensured that the freight market stayed up for around two and a half years. This gave owners the profits to build a massive amount of new VLCC tonnage, and hence oil companies the ships they needed to cut their freight costs now they had to move oil to the west via the Cape of Good Hope. In this report, the third in a series from H.P. Drewry (Shipping Consultants) Limited, the development of loading and discharge terminals to cater for this very rapid growth in the size of tankers is investigated. All current and proposed VLCC terminal developments are reviewed, and it is seen how six trunk ports are the key to the European crude oil supply pattern, and seven ports for Japan. By tracking the existing fleet, this report finds that existing facilities still seem to have not yet caught up with the increasing size of crude carrier and by relating current and proposed refinery capacities in Western Europe and Japan to VLCC discharge terminals, it considers that in the mid 1970's we might see the reverse situation, with there being too many terminals for the largest of the VLCC's, the 300,000 tonners plus. The use of VLCC's has resulted in significant operational problems, and restrictions such as multi-port loads and discharges. These limitations on the current use of VLCC's might also play an important part in the future utilization of the VLCC fleet. The report therefore analyses the multi-port activity of the VLCC fleet over the year mid 1970/mid 1971, and comments on whether proposed terminal developments should reduce multi-porting over the next few years. In the longer term, the million tonner is being discussed. In conclusion, therefore, from the trends in crude oil import demand, a broad look ahead as to where this size of tanker could be used is also given, together with what major route restrictions might limit its capabilities.

  • Corporate Authors:

    Drewry (HP) (Shipping Consultants) Limited

    Palladium House, 1-4 Argyll Street
    London W1V 1AD,   England 
  • Publication Date: 1972-2

Subject/Index Terms

Filing Info

  • Accession Number: 00039342
  • Record Type: Publication
  • Source Agency: Drewry (HP) (Shipping Consultants) Limited
  • Files: TRIS
  • Created Date: Nov 10 1974 12:00AM