Page 90 - ΝΑΥΤΙΚΑ ΧΡΟΝΙΚΑ - SEPT 2025

Annual research

The final category consists of very large companies, Table 7 Distribution of the bulk carrier fleet by vessel size
with fleets comprising at least 50 vessels. There are 13 such for the period 2023-2025
companies managing a total fleet of 846 vessels with an aver- Source: Analysis of data sourced by Greek Shipping Publications
age capacity of 117,065 DWT and an average age of 13.1 years.
Cumulatively, these 13 companies manage 15.8% of the fleet. 2025 2024 2023
The fleet composition of these very large companies is as
follows: 38% tankers, 30% bulk carriers, 22% container-
ships, 4% LPG carriers, and 6% other vessel types. Notably, Handysize
there is only one LNG carrier in the fleets of these com-
panies. The low number of LNG carriers is owed to the
research’s approach, which regards shipping subsidiaries 22% (588) 20% (509) 21% (538)
of larger groups that specialise in managing a specific type
of vessel as separate entities.
The large number of tankers managed by these 13 com- Handymax
panies impacts their fleet’s average capacity, which rises
to 117,065 DWT compared to 83,732 DWT for the total fleet.
It is worth noting that in the corresponding 2024 research, 27% (744) 28% (711) 28% (716)
there were 15 companies in this size category, while in the
2023 research, there were 16 companies.
Moreover, the overall management profile of large-sized Panamax
companies has not significantly changed in recent years.

Bulk Carriers 35% (946) 36% (916) 35% (922)
Given the particularly high number of bulk carriers in the Greek-
managed fleet, a more detailed record of bulk carriers and
their distribution in the fleet of small, medium, and large- Capesize
sized companies – based on ship size – follows.
The size criterion adopted in this research is the same as
that of UNCTAD and has been noted at the beginning of the 16% (441) 16% (419) 16% (413)
research. Overall, shipping companies located in Piraeus
and Athens manage a total of 2,719 bulk carriers. Of these,
22% (588) are Handysizes, 27% (744) are Handymaxes,
35% (946) are Panamaxes, and 16% (441) are Capesizes.
21% (563 vessels) are managed by small-sized companies,
38% (1,030 vessels) by medium-sized companies, and 41%
(1,126 vessels) by large-sized companies.
The distribution of the fleet’s bulk carriers by ship size
has not shown any significant changes between the years
2023, 2024, and 2025.
However, notable differences emerge when considering
the size of the ship management companies. Small-sized
companies manage 563 bulk carriers (21%), which are
predominantly of smaller size: 35% of their fleet consists
of Handysize bulk carriers, while another 34% consists of
Handymax bulk carriers – percentages that are significantly
higher compared to their percentage in the total fleet.
On the other hand, 28% of the small-sized companies’ fleet
consists of Panamax bulk carriers (35% across all compa-
nies), while only 3% consists of Capesize bulk carriers (16%
across all companies).
As previously stressed, small companies opt for bulk carriers
with greater operational flexibility, whose management is less
risky as they are not dependent on the few dominant com-
modities associated with larger vessel sizes. At the same time,
precisely because these vessels are more versatile in terms
of the cargo they transport, they also operate in markets with
lower competition, extending their economic lifespan.

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