Why Watertruck+

This overview provides a resumé of the fleet of dry cargo ships, belonging to investors located in Belgium on 31/12/2015 (source: ITB).

This shows there was a Belgian fleet of 706 dry cargo ships on 31 December 2015, with a total capacity of 988,138 tons. The average tonnage amounted to 1,568 tons.

The CEMT grade I-IV was comprised of 487 units, i.e. 69% of the entire fleet.

After completion of the project (2019), the size of the Watertruck+ fleet will be 31 units (28 barges + 3 push tugs), i.e. 3% of the total Belgian fleet of dry cargo ships or 5% of the total number in the segment CEMT grade I-IV.

Category

Motor ships

Number

Tonnage

25/250t

251/450t

451/650t

651/850t

851/1000t

1001/1500t

1501/2000t

2001/2500t

2501/3000t

3001t & +

135

187

49.559

42.587

40.894

31.590

231.534

94.532

96.034

118.662

282.746

More than 50% of the independent self-employed skippers is over 50, which results from the graph below (Source: RSZV, own compilation, 31/12/2014).

The number of independent inland shipping traders decreases year after year. In 2014 the population decreased with 53 units or 4% compared to 2013.

Threat

Current fleet is old and phasing out
Current fleet is very diverse which implies high design costs and unpredictable residual value
Aging workforce with limited influx
Limited economic attractiveness of IWT for shippers/receivers not located next to large fairways
No new builds due to the fragmented nature of the supply side and the current negative investment climate

Opportunities for Watertruck

New concept that attracts new cargo flows through an improved design
Standard design yet anticipating generic modifications: simple and cheap
Attracting new audience which prefers a more traditional, local lifestyle
A design and logistics concept that allows smaller units to penetrate the hinterland with an increased payload
Offering an investment opportunity in a standard product with a broad scope of applicaton and predictable resale value