Crude Oil Tanker Charter
Crude oil tankers carry crude oil, and often heavier dirty products such as fuel oil, from producing regions to refineries.
Sizes
Crude tankers run from Aframax and Suezmax ships to very large crude carriers (VLCC). The size depends on the parcel, the load and discharge ports and the draft they allow.
What they carry
Crude oil of different grades, and dirty products such as heavy fuel oil. Give the grade, the quantity and the ports so ship operators can judge the fit.
How it is chartered
Crude is mostly fixed on a voyage charter for one cargo, and sometimes on a time charter for a period.
Grades and parcel sizes
Crude oil differs by grade: light or heavy, sweet or sour, and each grade has its own price and its own buyers. A VLCC carries about two million barrels, a Suezmax about one million and an Aframax roughly 600,000 to 700,000 barrels. Cargoes are named by the grade, the quantity in barrels and the loading and discharging terminals.
Terminals and transfers
Crude oil is loaded at terminals on the coast or through buoys at sea, and large ships sometimes transfer part of their cargo to a smaller ship at sea or in a port, a ship-to-ship transfer, when the discharge port is too shallow. The ship operator needs the berth and draft limits to offer a ship. See the guide to Aframax, Suezmax and VLCC tankers.
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