Types of Oil Vessels Shipping

One factor you need to consider is whether you are going to get a petroleum commodity exposure through industry, oil transportation is the same vessels. Before investing in a warehouse tanker, carefully examine the fleet of working ships.

To help you in this exam, here are some of the types of ships used in the crude oil-transport global industry:

• Ultra Large Crude Carrier (ULCC): This type of ship, known in the industry as the ULCC, is the largest ship in the market. It is used for long-haul travel. It offers economies of scale as it can carry large amounts of oil over long distances.
• Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC): The VLCC is the vessel of choice for long distance sea trips. It is ideal for intercontinental shipping; its areas of activity are the Persian Gulf for East Asia and West Africa to the United States, among other routes.
• Suezmax: This vessel is called so because its design and dimensions allow transit through the Suez Canal in Egypt. Suezmax is among the vessels used to transport oil from the Persian Gulf to Europe, as well as to other destinations. It is ideal for mid-range trips.
• Aframax: The Aframax, whose first four letters are the acronym of Average Freight Rate, is considered the "battle horse" of the fleet of tankers. Because of its smaller size, it is ideal for short-haul travel and has the ability to transport crude oil and products to most ports around the world.
• Panamax: Like Suezmax, Panamax takes its name from its ability to transit through a channel - in this case, the Panama Canal. This vessel is sometimes used for short-haul trips between the Caribbean ports, Europe, and the United States.

In addition to their captivating names, these vessels are identified as crude oil and products that can carry them to sea. The unit used to capture this capacity is known as the Dead Weight Ton, or DWT. DWT measures the weight of the ship, including all loads it carries. Most ships are built in such a way that 1 DWT is equivalent to 6.7 barrels of oil.

Vessel Type Dead tons of weight Equivalent to Petroleum (barrels)

ULCC            320,000 and up                    2+ million

VLCC            200000-320000                    2 millions

Suezmax             120000-200000                   1 million

Aframax              80,000-120,000                   600,000

Panamax              50,000-80,000                    300,000