China increasingly using dry bulk carriers to move project cargoes around the world

There has been a remarkable doubling of the amount of project cargoes leaving China on dry bulk carriers over the past year.

Citing AIS satellite dry bulk carrier movement data from AXSMarine, Greece’s Ursa Shipbrokers has tallied that project cargo exports carried by dry bulk carriers from China to international destinations amounted to 3m tonnes in 2024, requiring the equivalent of 3.99m tonnes of vessel deadweight utilisation for transportation. These figures represent increases of 106% and 103% year-on-year from 2023, respectively.

“The term ‘project cargo’ encompasses various shipments, such as machinery, vehicles, and oversized cargoes, including wind turbine blades, among others,” Ursa explained in a note to clients. 

The number of dry bulk carriers involved in project cargo exports from China, as well as the total project cargo-related voyages, also increased by 58% and 60% year-on-year. In total, 158 dry bulk carriers were engaged in 2024, participating in 160 project cargo voyages originating from China, according to Ursa.

UK consultancy Drewry noted in a recent report that dedicated project cargo tonnage remains tight going into 2025.

“A tight supply of project cargo [vessel capacity] will persist due to a low orderbook, resulting in higher charter rates. Furthermore, if delays in deliveries increase in 2025, we may see rates surging next year for project cargo,” Drewry stated in a recent report.