Tue Jan 3, 2012
SINGAPORE Jan 3 (Reuters) - The first of Vale's giant dry bulk vessels to arrive in China has completed delivery of its iron ore cargo, shipping data showed on Tuesday, a key step forward in the Brazilian miner's plan to cut shipping costs to its biggest market.
Reuters Freightviews and independent shipping data confirmed the 388,000-tonne vessel, Berge Everest, had departed China's Port of Dalian over the weekend for Singapore, where it will likely refuel for its journey back to Brazil.
Draught measurements indicated the ship had unloaded all or nearly all of its iron ore cargo in Dalian.
Vale has ordered 35 of the world's largest dry bulk carriers, of which six are already on the water, at an estimated cost of $4.2 billion from Chinese and Korean shipyards.
The world's second largest miner had been trying since June 2011 to get Chinese authorities to allow the megaships to enter the country's ports.
Chinese port officials have declined to comment on the arrival of Berge Everest, leaving it unclear as to whether other giant Vale ships will be allowed to dock in the country's ports.
Five other giant ships operated by Vale, the world's top iron ore producer, were not expected to follow Berge Everest into China at least in the near term.
Shipping data showed two heading back to Brazil, two in Europe and one -- the Vale Beijing -- anchored off Brazil's Ponta da Madeira Port.
The Vale Beijing, the newest member of the "Valemax" fleet, developed cracks in its hull on its maiden voyage, sparking concerns from Chinese shipowners about the safety of these ships.
Chinese shipowners and steelmakers are strongly opposed to Vale's vessels, fearing the ships are a "Trojan Horse" that the miner will use to monopolize both the shipping and iron ore markets at China's expense.
Vale, which sells about 40 percent of its ore to China, is counting on Valemaxes to slash shipping costs and better compete with Australian rivals BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto . While Vale's ore is generally of higher quality, that advantage is cancelled by Australia's proximity to China, the world's top steelmaker and biggest ore importer.
(sourced Reuters)
Showing posts with label Chinese ports. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Chinese ports. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Only time will tell if Vale's giant ore carriers will enter China
Tuesday, 13 December 2011
Brazilian iron ore miner Vale said it would take time for its new mega-ships to be able to enter Chinese ports but stood by its shipping strategy.Its multi-billion dollar plan to cut freight costs by ordering a fleet of 35 of the world's biggest iron-ore carriers as it aims to tap demand in China, the world's No. 1 importer of the raw material used to produce steel, has faced stiff opposition from Chinese shipping players.
"It was definitely not a mistake," Vale's executive director of iron ore and strategy, Jose Carlos Martins, told a news conference on Wednesday in due time. These safety measures, the drafting situations when asked whether he regretted building the mega-vessels before getting permission to berth at Chinese ports."I think it is a question of time, and these vessels will be very much used on this route from Brazil to Asia."
Martins would not speculate how long it will take. "I think things will happen in ports, all of these things have to be seen, to be developed, without being in a hurry. It takes time. You need to be patient," he said. China has yet to allow any of Vale's giant ships to dock at its ports, forcing the world's biggest iron-ore producer to send its vessels instead to Italy, Oman and other destinations. Martins said there was one ship owner, "who is not happy with our strategy".
He added, "The Chinese government never said anything against it. This is a port issue. We need to solve it with port authorities." In a further setback for the group, the damaged Vale Beijing, which is the world's largest iron ore carrier, was towed on Tuesday from its berth in Brazil for repairs, raising potential safety worries about the mega-ships. The ship, delivered in September to its owner and operator, South Korea's STX Pan Ocean, is longer and wider than three soccer fields. It was about to start its first fully loaded voyage, a planned run to Rotterdam.
"Vale Beijing belongs to STX. It is an STX project, so we are awaiting their appraisal. The other ships have nothing to do with this. They are the same size but they are different projects. They are different," Martins said."Now we are waiting ... I am not minimising this, it is very serious and we are really concerned. But we need to wait for the conclusions. Everything we say now is speculation."
Martins said he hoped the ship classification society would have "a good explanation" for the damaged vessel.
He added that he was confident about the seaworthiness of other mega-ships already in service.
"Vale Brasil is now on its fifth voyage, and we have Vale Rio de Janeiro, Vale Italia. All those ships are already berthing, loading without a problem," he said.
NEW IRON ORE PRICE ERA
Vale's iron ore pricing strategy was also going through changes.
A 31 percent plunge in spot iron ore prices .IO62-CNI=SI in October prompted Asian steel producers to scour for adjustments in pricing the steelmaking ingredient to more closely reflect spot rates.
China Steel, Taiwan's top steelmaker, said it had agreed on a 23 percent cut in iron ore prices for October-December with the Brazilian miner, but Martins said rather than a discount, this was due to a switch to a new pricing method.
"Until last quarter we were using a lagging quarterly price, but with the recent drop in price, we got a lot of pressure from customers to change it and to use the (current) quarter average," Martins said.
"So we are now basing the price on the current quarter average ... nearly 80 percent of our sales are now done this way."
Vale said looking at average spot prices so far this quarter, based on the new mechanism, contract prices should be about 20 percent lower than if they were based on the previous method.
Martins said a move towards even shorter pricing was inevitable, adding there were several initiatives in the industry to create a pricing platform.
Source: Reuters
Brazilian iron ore miner Vale said it would take time for its new mega-ships to be able to enter Chinese ports but stood by its shipping strategy.Its multi-billion dollar plan to cut freight costs by ordering a fleet of 35 of the world's biggest iron-ore carriers as it aims to tap demand in China, the world's No. 1 importer of the raw material used to produce steel, has faced stiff opposition from Chinese shipping players.
"It was definitely not a mistake," Vale's executive director of iron ore and strategy, Jose Carlos Martins, told a news conference on Wednesday in due time. These safety measures, the drafting situations when asked whether he regretted building the mega-vessels before getting permission to berth at Chinese ports."I think it is a question of time, and these vessels will be very much used on this route from Brazil to Asia."
Martins would not speculate how long it will take. "I think things will happen in ports, all of these things have to be seen, to be developed, without being in a hurry. It takes time. You need to be patient," he said. China has yet to allow any of Vale's giant ships to dock at its ports, forcing the world's biggest iron-ore producer to send its vessels instead to Italy, Oman and other destinations. Martins said there was one ship owner, "who is not happy with our strategy".
He added, "The Chinese government never said anything against it. This is a port issue. We need to solve it with port authorities." In a further setback for the group, the damaged Vale Beijing, which is the world's largest iron ore carrier, was towed on Tuesday from its berth in Brazil for repairs, raising potential safety worries about the mega-ships. The ship, delivered in September to its owner and operator, South Korea's STX Pan Ocean, is longer and wider than three soccer fields. It was about to start its first fully loaded voyage, a planned run to Rotterdam.
"Vale Beijing belongs to STX. It is an STX project, so we are awaiting their appraisal. The other ships have nothing to do with this. They are the same size but they are different projects. They are different," Martins said."Now we are waiting ... I am not minimising this, it is very serious and we are really concerned. But we need to wait for the conclusions. Everything we say now is speculation."
Martins said he hoped the ship classification society would have "a good explanation" for the damaged vessel.
He added that he was confident about the seaworthiness of other mega-ships already in service.
"Vale Brasil is now on its fifth voyage, and we have Vale Rio de Janeiro, Vale Italia. All those ships are already berthing, loading without a problem," he said.
NEW IRON ORE PRICE ERA
Vale's iron ore pricing strategy was also going through changes.
A 31 percent plunge in spot iron ore prices .IO62-CNI=SI in October prompted Asian steel producers to scour for adjustments in pricing the steelmaking ingredient to more closely reflect spot rates.
China Steel, Taiwan's top steelmaker, said it had agreed on a 23 percent cut in iron ore prices for October-December with the Brazilian miner, but Martins said rather than a discount, this was due to a switch to a new pricing method.
"Until last quarter we were using a lagging quarterly price, but with the recent drop in price, we got a lot of pressure from customers to change it and to use the (current) quarter average," Martins said.
"So we are now basing the price on the current quarter average ... nearly 80 percent of our sales are now done this way."
Vale said looking at average spot prices so far this quarter, based on the new mechanism, contract prices should be about 20 percent lower than if they were based on the previous method.
Martins said a move towards even shorter pricing was inevitable, adding there were several initiatives in the industry to create a pricing platform.
Source: Reuters
Monday, August 15, 2011
Iron ore stockpiles at China's major ports (Aug 8- Aug 12)
Mon, Aug15, 2011
Till the close of last week (August 12), the imported iron ore stockpiles at China's major ports posted at 94.74 mln tonnes, down 0.61 mln tonnes from 95.35 mln tonnes previous week; out of which Australian ore stockpiles reached 38.01 mln tonnes, down 0.27 mln tonnes; Brazilian ore inventory increased 0.88 mln tonnes to 23.21 mln tonnes; Indian ore stocks dropped 0.37 mln tonnes at 13.60 mln tonnes.
(sourced MySteel)
Till the close of last week (August 12), the imported iron ore stockpiles at China's major ports posted at 94.74 mln tonnes, down 0.61 mln tonnes from 95.35 mln tonnes previous week; out of which Australian ore stockpiles reached 38.01 mln tonnes, down 0.27 mln tonnes; Brazilian ore inventory increased 0.88 mln tonnes to 23.21 mln tonnes; Indian ore stocks dropped 0.37 mln tonnes at 13.60 mln tonnes.
(sourced MySteel)
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Spot iron ore touches $183 cfr on supply concerns
Shanghai 14 January 2011 07:46
Spot prices for 63.5% Indian fines jumped over 2% this week to $181-183 cfr per tonne Chinese ports on Friday, as concerns over Indian supply spread. Orissa state is pushing to ban iron ore exports, after Karnataka state started doing so. Spot prices have risen $2 from Thursday and $4 over the week, firming at an eight-month high. Fresh offers from miners have reached $184-185.
source:metalbulletin.com
Spot prices for 63.5% Indian fines jumped over 2% this week to $181-183 cfr per tonne Chinese ports on Friday, as concerns over Indian supply spread. Orissa state is pushing to ban iron ore exports, after Karnataka state started doing so. Spot prices have risen $2 from Thursday and $4 over the week, firming at an eight-month high. Fresh offers from miners have reached $184-185.
source:metalbulletin.com
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