LaycanDeskBitumen & Asphalt Tanker Chartering
Heated bitumen carriers of 3,000–15,000 dwt for bulk bitumen and asphalt from the Gulf and the Med to East Africa, India and West Africa. Bitumen tanker chartering for bulk bitumen and asphalt, on insulated, heated ships of 3,000 to 15,000 dwt from refineries in the Arabian Gulf, the Mediterranean and Southeast Asia to road-construction markets in East Africa, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and West Africa, with the loading refinery named before any owner is asked.
Bitumen moves in bulk only on a purpose-built ship: insulated cargo tanks with heating coils or thermal-oil heaters that keep the cargo at 150 to 160 degrees Celsius from the refinery to the receiving terminal, deep-well pumps rated for the viscosity, and often a coastal draft for the smaller discharge ports. Ships of 3,000 to 6,000 dwt serve the coastal and short-sea trades; 8,000 to 15,000 dwt carriers run the Gulf to East Africa, India and Southeast Asia voyages. The alternative, bitumen in drums or bitutainers on general cargo ships and in containers, is how the trade reaches ports with no heated storage, and the choice between the two is usually the first question a buyer asks.
A bitumen enquiry is fixed on the grade (penetration grade, viscosity grade or polymer-modified), the quantity, the loading refinery and berth, the receiving terminal and its heated storage, the laycan and the freight basis, and the buyer or seller who charters. The loading refinery is asked first, because the origin of the cargo and the ship's recent trading decide whether an owner will load at all. We put the cargo to the owners of heated tonnage on that lane and come back with named ships, positions and a freight idea; owners send positions and particulars to the board the same way.
Cargoes
- Bulk bitumen, penetration and viscosity grades
- Polymer-modified bitumen
- Asphalt and cutbacks
- Heated fuel oil and residues on suitable ships
Lanes we work
- Arabian Gulf to East Africa (Mombasa, Dar es Salaam, Djibouti)
- Gulf and India to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka
- Mediterranean and Black Sea refineries to West Africa
- Southeast Asia regional distribution
Questions charterers and owners ask
Bulk or drums: which is right for my cargo?
Bulk on a heated tanker is cheaper per tonne and is the standard for a terminal with heated storage; drums or bitutainers on a general cargo ship or in containers reach ports that have none, at a higher landed cost. The receiving side's storage decides, and we ask that before a ship is looked for.
What temperature does the cargo travel at?
Bitumen is loaded and carried at about 150 to 160 degrees Celsius so that it stays pumpable. The ship's heating capacity, insulation and pump rating must match the grade, which is why the grade is the first thing an owner asks for.
Why do you ask for the loading refinery?
Because a bitumen cargo is defined by the refinery that made it, and because owners and their insurers ask where the ship loads before they fix. A bitumen cargo offered without a named refinery is not put to owners.
What sizes are bitumen carriers?
Coastal and short-sea ships of about 3,000 to 6,000 dwt, and deep-sea carriers of 8,000 to 15,000 dwt. The receiving port's draft and the size of its heated storage usually decide which is workable.