Bulkargo’s brokerage team has executed fixtures across dry cargo, tankers, project cargo, and specialised products. The examples below, anonymised from real transactions, illustrate the technical, commercial, and operational disciplines that define our approach: vessel selection, market timing, owner relationships, and post-fixture support. Each fixture is presented with the cargo, route, vessel, charter type, the challenge that defined the brokerage problem, and how it was resolved.
The intent is not to showcase headline rates. It is to show the reasoning behind each decision: why a particular vessel, why that owner, why that structure, and what would have gone wrong with a less considered approach. Read these as case files rather than marketing copy.
- 8
- Fixture profiles
- 4
- Cargo categories
- 3
- Ocean basins
- 5+
- Charter types
Across all four desks
Dry · Tanker · Project · Specialised
Atlantic · Pacific · Indian
Voyage · Time · COA · Hybrid · Specialist
Iron ore fines, Brazil → China, tight laycan
- Cargo
- 170,000 MT iron ore fines
- Route
- Tubarão, Brazil → Qingdao, China
- Vessel class
- Capesize (180,000 DWT)
- Charter type
- Voyage charter
- Inquiry to fixture
- 4 days
- Outcome
- ~6% below indicative spot
The situation
A mining client needed to lift a cargo with a tight five-day laycan because the next stage in the mine’s loading schedule depended on this vessel sailing on time. A stockpile build-up at the load terminal would have forced a slowdown at the pit if the cargo was not moved, and the producer’s quarterly volume guidance to its own customers had no slack in it. The Capesize spot market was firming, BCI had moved up 12% in the preceding two weeks on the back of a strong Brazil-to-China iron ore flow and limited West Australia round-voyage tonnage redirecting onto the Atlantic. Brazil-load Cape tonnage was thin against demand, with most prompt candidates already on subjects to other charterers. Hold cleanliness was not a worry for iron ore fines, but draft at Tubarão and the China discharge port both needed to match: a vessel marginal on tropical fresh-water draft would have meant a part-cargo lift, which the producer could not accept.
What we did
Rather than approach the open spot market and accept whatever rate cleared, we worked the position lists hard and identified two Capesize vessels completing discharge in West Africa within the window. Both were positioning toward South America anyway and would have ballasted regardless: the alternative for each owner was an idle ballast leg with no firm employment. We negotiated with both owners in parallel on a slightly compressed laycan in exchange for the freight level, using the position value as the lever rather than the headline market rate. Both owners had clean recent histories on iron ore work, both vessels held current class and P&I, and both were inside the producer’s vetting list. We pressed for first-refusal style structuring with the stronger-positioned vessel and held the second owner warm as a fallback while the lead negotiation closed. Freight was benchmarked against three reported Brazil to China Cape fixtures from the prior trading week, and the agreed level sat at the low end of that range.
Outcome
Vessel fixed two days before the laycan opened, with the fallback owner released cleanly and no relationship damage. Loading completed on schedule, vessel sailed within the mine’s window, and the discharge in Qingdao proceeded inside the receiver’s berthing plan with no claims. The mine’s downstream loading schedule held intact, and the producer hit its quarterly volume guidance without invoking the contractual flexibilities it had with its end-buyers. Spot market is the default, but it is not always the right answer: when cargo has a hard deadline and the market is firming, positional fits and parallel negotiation with two willing owners beat market average.
Wind tower components, N. Europe → S. America
- Cargo
- 24 wind tower sections + nacelles
- Route
- Esbjerg, Denmark → Suape, Brazil
- Vessel
- Heavy-lift MPP, 2 × 350 MT cranes
- Charter type
- Voyage charter
- Inquiry to fixture
- 18 days
- Outcome
- No re-handling, dispatch payable
The situation
A renewables developer needed to ship the second batch of wind farm components for a project in northeastern Brazil. The first batch had been shipped through a competing project broker on a less suitable vessel; deck stowage had been inefficient and one tower section needed to be re-lifted at discharge port because of access issues. The client wanted a cleaner second fixture.
What we did
Reviewed the cargo manifest before approaching the market. Worked through the stowage plan with two candidate vessel owners: both had appropriate crane capacity but only one had a hold and deck layout that allowed the long tower sections to load over-the-side without requiring quayside trans-shipment. Engaged a marine warranty surveyor to sign off the lift plan and sea-fastening before fixture.
Outcome
Vessel loaded all 24 sections in a single lift plan with no quay-side re-handling. Discharge in Suape completed in 4 days against an allowed 6: dispatch payable to charterer. No damage claims, no operational disputes. Project cargo lives or dies on stowage and lift planning.
Caustic soda, Europe → West Africa
- Cargo
- 3,200 MT caustic soda 50%
- Route
- Antwerp → Tema, Ghana
- Vessel class
- Chemical tanker, IMO II, 8,500 DWT
- Charter type
- Voyage charter
- Inquiry to fixture
- 6 days
- Outcome
- Discharge inside buyer window
The situation
A chemicals trader needed to deliver caustic soda 50% to an industrial buyer in Ghana within a specific window. The buyer’s plant had a finite holding tank and was running low: discharge had to happen between dates X and X+5, and a late arrival would have forced a production stoppage at a downstream process the buyer could not afford to idle. Caustic 50% is a heated cargo, IMO II classified, requiring stainless or properly coated tanks, working heating coils on the voyage, and a clean wall-wash before load. The North-West European chemical tanker market was reasonably tight on small-stainless tonnage at the time, with the parcel-tanker majors covering scheduled liner programmes and prompt independent positions thin. Tema added its own constraints: West African terminal queues can run long, agency quality varies, and a vessel with no prior call history can lose a day or more on first-time clearance.
What we did
Approached three chemical tanker operators with stainless steel tonnage in the European range and screened each against three filters in parallel: last-cargo compatibility (caustic does not tolerate residues from many prior cargoes, and one of the three failed on a previous methanol-with-additive load), heating-coil condition and documented carriage-temperature history on heated parcels, and discharge-port familiarity at Tema. From the two viable options we picked the vessel with better Tema experience: the owner had used the terminal multiple times in the prior two years, knew the agency, the customs flow, and the manifold operator at the chemicals berth. Pre-loading wall-wash testing was arranged at Antwerp with a witnessing surveyor, and the freight level was benchmarked against two recent comparable Antwerp to West Africa caustic fixtures to keep the trader inside market median rather than paying a relationship premium.
Outcome
Vessel loaded on time, voyage proceeded on schedule, discharge completed on day X+3 inside the buyer’s window. Heated tanks maintained 15°C carriage temperature throughout, supported by daily temperature logs that satisfied the buyer’s quality desk on arrival. No quality claims, no demurrage at Tema, no agency disputes. The trader returned with a follow-on caustic shipment to the same buyer the following quarter and asked us to keep the same vessel and owner combination in view. Chemical fixtures are won and lost on vessel-cargo compatibility and on discharge-port operational knowledge: not on headline freight rate.
Grain export programme, US Gulf → Mediterranean
- Cargo
- 6 × ~55,000 MT wheat / corn
- Route
- US Gulf → Med (IT, ES, GR, TR)
- Vessel class
- Supramax / Ultramax (~60,000 DWT)
- Charter type
- Contract of Affreightment (9-month)
- Inquiry to COA
- 14 days
- Outcome
- Single-digit-% saving net of cycle
The situation
A grain trader had a 9-month export programme from the US Gulf to a mix of Mediterranean buyers. Volume was predictable, route mix was known, and the trader wanted rate certainty rather than spot exposure. The Supramax Atlantic-to-Med market had been volatile and the trader was concerned about absorbing rate spikes mid-programme.
What we did
Structured a COA with a single Atlantic-based Supramax owner covering all six shipments at a fixed freight rate with defined laytime, demurrage, and lifting-window terms. Built in a tolerance band on individual cargo quantity (±10%) and a flexibility clause allowing one of the six shipments to be deferred by up to 60 days. The fixed rate sat slightly above the prevailing spot indication at COA signature but below the average expected market on a forward view.
Outcome
Of the six shipments, three liftings fell during periods when the spot market exceeded the COA rate (the trader benefited) and two fell during softer periods (the trader paid above-spot). Net of the cycle the COA delivered single-digit-percent savings against spot, plus full rate certainty for the trader’s contract economics with end-buyers.
COA is not always cheaper than spot. It is more predictable. For traders whose cargo contracts price freight in or who have thin margins exposed to rate volatility, that predictability is the value.
Clean petroleum products, US Gulf → WCSA
- Cargo
- ~37,000 MT ULSD
- Route
- Houston → Callao, Peru
- Vessel class
- MR product tanker (~50,000 DWT)
- Charter type
- Voyage charter, Worldscale
- Inquiry to fixture
- 2 days
- Outcome
- ~WS 15 below prompt market avg
The situation
A refining client needed to lift a parcel of ULSD on prompt market: vessel needed within 4 days, with a hard arrival window at Callao tied to a shore-tank rotation at the receiving terminal. The Atlantic MR market was firm at the time, BCTI sitting above its rolling three-month average and prompt USG tonnage thin against demand from the WCSA and West Africa routes. Worldscale levels were elevated against the route’s flat rate, and the spread between prompt and forward MR cover had widened, which usually signals a market that punishes late inquiries. Receiver vetting added a second constraint: the discharge terminal required a current SIRE inspection and a clean major-oil approval for the load, which knocked out several otherwise compatible candidates before the freight conversation even started.
What we did
Worked the position list off the USG and Caribbean ranges and identified an MR product tanker discharging gasoline in Galveston with an open laycan window two days inside the client’s need. The vessel had a clean SIRE within validity, sat on the receiver’s approved list, and her last three cargoes screened acceptably for ULSD with standard tank cleaning. We benchmarked the Worldscale level against two adjacent prompt MR fixtures reported that week and pressed the owner on the position value: she was Caribbean-positioned with no firm next employment, and the alternative was a ballast leg or an idle day. Owner agreed to fix prompt at a Worldscale level below the prevailing prompt market in exchange for a quick conclusion and an indication on a follow-on cargo. We locked last-cargo compatibility (gasoline before ULSD is acceptable with documented butterworth cleaning), confirmed SIRE and terminal approval, and closed within the day.
Outcome
Vessel loaded within laycan, voyage completed on schedule, discharge concluded inside the receiver’s shore-tank window. No quality claims, no demurrage exposure, and the follow-on cargo materialised within the quarter. Speed matters in tanker chartering: prompt fixtures clear in 24 to 48 hours when the market is firm, and the broker’s job is to have a vetted, terminal-approved candidate ready before the inquiry hits the wider market and the rate moves against the charterer.
Cement clinker COA, Asia → East Africa
- Cargo
- 8 × ~45,000 MT cement clinker
- Route
- Vietnam → East African range
- Vessel class
- Supramax / Handymax (geared)
- Charter type
- Hybrid: Time charter + COA
- Inquiry to fixture
- 21 days
- Outcome
- ~4% below COA-equivalent estimate
The situation
A cement producer was opening East African distribution and needed a predictable clinker supply chain from its Vietnamese export plant. Volumes were known for the first year, eight roughly equal liftings, with discharge spread across three East African ports of varying infrastructure quality. Two of the three lacked shore-side cement-handling equipment, which meant a geared vessel with operator-trusted cranes and a master used to self-discharge work. The Supramax Asia-out market had been swinging on Pacific iron ore and Indonesian coal demand, and the producer was uncomfortable with the rate volatility a pure spot or open-market COA would have imported into its delivered-cost calculation. Reliability at the discharge end mattered more than pure freight rate: a missed schedule at a new distribution port would have cost more in lost customer trust than several quarters of freight savings.
What we did
Rather than COA against the open market, we structured a dedicated-vessel arrangement: a single Supramax committed to the route under a 12-month time charter, operated under the cement producer’s COA terms with the discharge buyers. The owner shortlist was built around geared configuration, hold capacity for clinker SF (stowage factor matters when the cargo is dense and the port draft tight), and operator track record on self-discharge at developing ports. We picked an owner whose vessel had already worked East African cement and coal trades, which meant her master, chief officer, and crane crew knew the discharge routines and the local stevedoring quality. Time-charter hire was benchmarked against the BSI Supramax 10TC average over the preceding rolling quarter, with an index-linked review at month six to protect both sides from a sustained market shift.
Outcome
Eight shipments lifted across the year with no missed schedules and no cargo claims. Discharge-port operations stabilised once port agents, the master, and the local stevedores had settled into a routine, with average laytime tightening by the third call at each port. Total programme freight cost came in approximately 4% below an equivalent multi-vessel COA estimate the producer had run as a baseline, and the operational reliability supported a confident expansion of the distribution programme into a second year on the same structure.
Bagged urea, Black Sea → East Mediterranean
- Cargo
- ~30,000 MT bagged urea
- Route
- Yuzhny, Ukraine → Iskenderun, Turkey
- Vessel class
- Handysize, geared (~32,000 DWT)
- Charter type
- Voyage charter
- Inquiry to fixture
- 5 days
- Outcome
- Vessel delivered on laycan, within budget
The situation
A fertiliser trader needed to move a parcel of bagged urea from a Black Sea load port to an East Mediterranean discharge berth on a tight laycan. The discharge port had a sustained draft restriction (around 10.5m at the relevant berth) and no shore cranes suitable for bagged cargo, so the vessel had to be gear-fitted and Handysize-sized. The bagged stow also required certified clean holds: any residue from a prior dirty cargo would have triggered a rejection at load survey.
What we did
Worked through prompt Handysize positions in the Black Sea and East Med ranges. Two candidates had compatible laycans, but only one had a last-cargo history (clean grain) that would pass a bagged-urea hold inspection without an extended clean. We confirmed hold cleanliness sign-off in advance with the load-port surveyor, vetted the vessel’s gear capacity against the bagged-pallet lift plan, and locked the owner in before a competing fixture took the position.
Outcome
Vessel delivered on laycan, holds passed inspection on first presentation, loading and discharge completed without claims. Freight settled within the trader’s budget for the route. Handysize work lives on positioning and hold-history discipline: the right ship in the right place beats a wider market sweep.
Mining equipment: STS crane to Latin America
- Cargo
- 1 × STS crane, fully assembled, ~440 MT
- Route
- Shanghai → Cartagena, Colombia
- Vessel
- Specialist heavy-lift, submersible deck
- Charter type
- Voyage charter, lump sum
- Inquiry to fixture
- 35 days
- Outcome
- Operational 10 days post-arrival
The situation
A port operator had purchased a new STS container crane and needed it shipped fully assembled from the Chinese manufacturer to a Colombian port. Disassembly was not an option: the buyer needed the crane operational quickly on arrival, and reassembly time at destination would have been prohibitive.
What we did
Worked with two specialist heavy-lift operators: globally there are only a handful that handle fully assembled STS cranes. Coordinated marine warranty surveyor sign-off on load-out from the manufacturer’s quay, sea-fastening design, and route survey (the vessel had to clear specific air-draft restrictions on the route). Float-on / float-off load-out using the vessel’s submersible deck.
Outcome
Crane sailed in May, arrived in Cartagena in June, floated off at destination in single operation, was operational within 10 days of arrival. The most extreme end of project cargo overlaps with a small specialist fleet: most of the work is in knowing which two or three vessels in the world can do the job, where they are, and when they are available.
Themes that come up across the case studies
A few patterns that show up repeatedly:
- Vessel choice is upstream of rate. The cheapest ship on the freight line is rarely the cheapest fixture once vessel-cargo fit, port suitability, and operational reliability are factored in.
- Owner relationships matter more than the algorithm. Public fixture databases tell you the average rate. Knowing which specific owner has a reason to want your specific cargo is what beats average.
- Post-fixture is part of the fixture. Demurrage settlement, documentation review, and dispute support are where many cargo owners lose money: almost always silently. A broker who stays with the fixture catches issues before they cost.
- Structure follows volume. Spot for one-offs, COA for predictable programmes, time charter for sustained needs, hybrid structures for niche cases. There is no default; we work to the cargo.