Voyage Charter

Voyage Charter is a type of chartering in international shipping where the shipowner and the charterer (usually a cargo owner or trader) sign a charter party agreeing to use all or part of the vessel's capacity for a specific voyage to transport goods. The charterer pays freight based on the quantity of cargo or a lump sum. It is commonly used in bulk commodity trades such as iron ore, coal, grain, and oil, when the cargo owner needs to transport a full shipload or large volume. Key points: the contract must specify loading/discharging ports, laytime, demurrage/despatch, freight payment terms, and liability allocation; under a voyage charter, the shipowner is responsible for operation and navigation management, while the charterer is only responsible for cargo loading and discharging. Difference from Time Charter: voyage charter is charged per voyage, time charter per time. Difference from Bareboat Charter: under bareboat charter the charterer has full control of the vessel, while under voyage charter the shipowner retains control. Voyage charter is suitable for single or specific voyage transport, with lower flexibility but relatively controllable costs.