Sea cargo reference

Ships grouped by cargo and by the limit that names them

Dry bulk, boxes, liquids and one-trade hulls, then the bulk size names from the smallest handy ships to the largest ore carriers. The class tells you what the ship is built to do.

The main cargo families

Five groups cover nearly all merchant ships that move trade.

General Cargo vessel General Cargo A multipurpose hull for mixed parcels Open the class Bulk Carriers vessel Bulk Carriers Dry commodities poured into the hold Open the class Containerships vessel Containerships Cell guides built around a standard box Open the class Tanker Market vessel Tanker Market Liquid cargo, split by what is in the tanks Open the class Specialized vessel Specialized One cargo, one kind of hull Open the class

Liquid cargo ships

Tankers are split by the liquid in the tanks, not by how large the hull is.

Product Tankers vessel Product Tankers Coated tanks for refined oil Open the class Crude Carriers vessel Crude Carriers The heaviest tankers in service Open the class Chemical Tankers vessel Chemical Tankers A pump and a line for each tank Open the class Gas Carriers vessel Gas Carriers Gas held cold, under pressure, or both Open the class Asphalt Carriers vessel Asphalt Carriers Tanks kept hot enough to pump bitumen Open the class

One-trade ships

Hulls built for a single cargo that a general ship cannot carry at a workable cost.

Heavy-Lift vessel Heavy-Lift Lifts counted in hundreds of tonnes Open the class Wood Chip vessel Wood Chip Holds that fill before they reach the weight limit Open the class Livestock vessel Livestock Pens on several ventilated decks Open the class Refrigerated vessel Refrigerated A whole hold held at a set temperature Open the class Ro/Ro vessel Ro/Ro Cargo rolls on and rolls off Open the class

Dry bulk size names

These classes follow a physical limit: a canal lock, a loading berth, or the depth of water.

Names such as Handysize, Supramax and Capesize are market habits, not a written standard. Brokers, exchanges and owners do not all use the same deadweight band. Canal and berth limits below are published figures and stay fixed. The deadweight ranges are a guide.

Coaster vessel Coaster Short-sea work, and rivers where a deep-sea ship cannot go Open the class Handysize vessel Handysize The bulker that can call almost anywhere Open the class Handymax vessel Handymax The same cranes, with more cargo Open the class Supramax vessel Supramax The geared bulker the market quotes against Open the class Ultramax vessel Ultramax More cargo than a Supramax, on nearly the same hull Open the class Panamax vessel Panamax Drawn to the old Panama locks Open the class Kamsarmax vessel Kamsarmax Length set by one bauxite berth Open the class Post-Panamax vessel Post-Panamax Wider than the old Panama locks Open the class Capesize vessel Capesize Ships that had to round the capes Open the class Valemax vessel Valemax Ore carriers of about 400,000 tonnes Open the class