Ballast Voyage: Meaning in Shipping
A ship sails "in ballast" when it carries no cargo. It takes water or other weight on board to sail safely, and it is the empty leg that most voyages have.
What ballast is
An empty ship sits high in the water and is unstable. To sail safely and to keep the propeller and the rudder under water, it takes ballast, usually seawater in special tanks. A voyage with ballast and without cargo is a ballast voyage, and a voyage with cargo is a laden voyage.
Why ships sail in ballast
Trade is rarely balanced. A ship that carries coal or grain from one region to another often has no cargo in the other direction. It then sails in ballast to the next loading port. These empty legs cost time and fuel, and the ship operator must recover that cost in the freight of the laden leg. This is one reason freight rates differ by direction.
Ballast in the contract
In a voyage charter the ship operator carries the ballast leg to the loading port inside the freight and plans it around the laycan. In a time charter a ballast leg in the charterer's orders is for the charterer's account, and a ballast bonus can be agreed for a delivery far from the usual route. The terms are in the charter party.
The ship's position
The position where a ship will be empty and ready is called its open position. Ship operators show it to charterers so that a cargo near that place can be matched with less ballast. A ship that is open near the loading port can usually offer better terms than one that has a long ballast leg.
Ballast water
Ballast water taken in one port and released in another can carry living organisms. International rules require ships to treat or exchange it. This is a cost and a rule of the ship, not a term for the charterer to plan, but it is part of what a ballast voyage means.
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Related guides
More in glossary
- Trip Time Charter
- Contract of Affreightment (COA)
- Time Charter vs Voyage Charter
- Laytime
- Demurrage and Despatch
- Notice of Readiness
- Charterer
- Shipowner, ship operator, disponent owner
- Ship broker
- Ship fixing and fixture
- Bulk carrier
- Deadweight tonnage (DWT)
- Bill of lading
- Baltic Dry Index
- Lien
- Off-hire
- Bunkers
- FIO and FIOS
- Cancelling date
- Ton-mile
- Statement of facts
- Letter of indemnity
- Dead freight
- Lighterage
- Stem
- Subjects
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