The 25 Most Overlooked Cost Levers in Ship Operations (That Aren’t Fuel or Crew)
Most owners spend their time on day rates, bunker costs, and crew budgets, yet a lot of quiet money moves through operational decisions that rarely make it into board packs. The 25 levers below...
The 2026 Green Premium: Who Pays and Who Gets Paid For Cleaner Ships – And Why
By 2026 the green premium in shipping has turned into a real cost line that someone has to absorb. On one side, large cargo and passenger ships trading with Europe are pulled into the...
8 Vessel Upgrades With the Fastest Payback in 2026
Shipping margins tighten fast when fuel and carbon costs move. If you’re ranking 2026 upgrades by “how quickly does this pay itself back,” start with changes that cut drag and restore propeller efficiency. The...
Where Detours Inflate Bunker Bills Right Now
Detours are no longer the exception. On several big trades the long way has become the plan, and every extra mile turns into real money. Longer passages mean more VLSFO burned, more charter days,...
Sails vs ALS on Ships: Which Wins for ROI?
Two groundbreaking technologies are reshaping ship budgets in 2026. Both with one simple goal, to save fuel. One spreads a cushion of bubbles under the hull to cut friction. The other captures wind with...
Generator Gold: Slash Hotel Load Without Complaints
Cutting “hotel load” starts with the air you move and the temperatures you hold. Small, crew-friendly tweaks to HVAC, nudging setpoints, slowing fans when spaces are empty, and using heat pumps or waste heat,...
Slow-Steaming Sweet Spot: Finding the RPM That Saves the Most
Slowing down saves fuel, but the cheapest speed isn’t obvious. It shifts with hire/day, fuel price, hull and prop condition, weather, and safe engine-load limits. The tool below scans your speed range, enforces a...
Cape vs Canal 2025-2026: Route Choice Calculator You Can Do On A Napkin
When Red Sea risk or Canal queues move the goalposts, owners need a fast way to test Cape versus Canal. This mini-calculator keeps it simple: distance, speed, fuel, tolls, and premiums. You get days,...
FuelEU 2025: The “€2,400/Ton” Penalty Trap and 7 Ways Shipowners Could Dodge It
FuelEU Maritime starts putting real money on the line in 2025. The penalty math can snowball fast, especially if you’ve got energy-intensive routes, thin margins, or uncertain alternative-fuel access. Below are potential strategies shipowners...
6 Proven Ways to Slash Chandlery Costs by 5–20%
Chandlery costs don’t just leak at the gangway; they start bleeding the moment specs are vague. Locking what you buy, how you describe it, and which brands are acceptable turns a messy RFQ into...
Hotel Loads That Hurt: 14 Aux Power Fixes During Port Stays
When you’re alongside, “hotel loads” quietly eat TCE. The fastest win is choosing the cheapest electrons: either plug into shore power or run auxiliaries on MGO/HSFO. The panel below lays out how to price...
Bunker Price Sensitivity Guide: Fuel Cost To TCE
When fuel jumps, voyage cash flow moves faster than schedules do. This guide tees up the exact levers that matter before you touch a calculator. what to watch in bunker curves, how each $10/mt...
10 Hidden Voyage Killers
Small misses stack into big money. Across a 30–40 day voyage, a few hours of queueing, a missed tide, or a slow shift at the berth quietly eats 5–15% of TCE. This series spotlights...
12 Current Fuel Insights That Boost TCE
Bunkers decide margin when the market runs hot, and today they are the fastest lever you control. This report turns fuel into action: read the Hi5 at the four key hubs, match the right...
Lay up, scrap, or slow steam: The 90 day decision playbook
Container rates are soft, capacity is long, and cash burn rises fast. This 90-day playbook shows when to lay up, when to slow steam, and when to recycle using simple thresholds and weekly checkpoints....
The Top Overlooked Port Costs That Quietly Drain Profits
Port calls often look predictable until the invoice arrives. Small line items stack up, rules change by port, and “included” services turn out to be base access only. For shipowners, these overlooked costs can...
The North Sea Route (NSR) Advantage: 10 Big Cost-Saving Insights for Shipowners
lFuel, time, and carbon are the three biggest levers you control on a long haul. The Northern Sea Route (NSR) can shorten Asia–Europe legs by thousands of nautical miles during the summer window, cutting...
Carbon Costs on the Horizon: 5 Ways to Soften the ETS Hit
Carbon costs are no longer a future concern for shipowners, they are here and already reshaping voyage economics. With the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) now extended to shipping, every tonne of CO₂ emitted...
Spare Parts: Stockpiling vs. Just-in-Time Procurement
Spare parts look small on the P&L until they do not. Longer lead times, price inflation on critical items, and surprise breakdowns can wipe out voyage profit. Cash trapped on shelves drags returns, while...
Bulk Buying Tricks That Slash Ship Provisioning Costs
Ship provisioning has always been a balancing act between quality, cost, and logistics. But for shipowners and operators managing multiple vessels, small inefficiencies quickly add up to big money lost. The key is not...