In line with NORDEN's strategic plan for 2023-2025 to capitalize on lucrative market opportunities, the company has recently acquired four Capesize vessels through two separate transactions. 

The acquisition is intended to enhance NORDEN's portfolio of freight service solutions aimed at its dry-segment customers.

NORDEN Enters Capesize Segment

By adding these vessels to its fleet, NORDEN can now offer customers a comprehensive full-service approach across all dry-segments, supporting cargo loads ranging between 5,000-200,000 tonnes.

“With the move into Capesize, NORDEN expands its offering to cover all dry cargo sizes, providing added value to our customers and partners globally,” says Jan Rindbo, CEO, NORDEN. “The expansion into Capesize also enables us to capitalise on the most attractive market opportunities in a high exposure segment with relatively few transactions.”

To ensure the success of its Capesize business, NORDEN will establish a dedicated team to serve its customers, backed by the global NORDEN organization.

The addition of these vessels to NORDEN's fleet will not only support the company's existing port logistics business, which currently operates a transshipment facility for a mining customer in Gabon, but also enhance the scope of future logistics projects.

With the option for customers to upsize their cargo loads, NORDEN can reduce operational costs and complexity, while also potentially reducing emissions. The vessels are expected to be delivered to NORDEN over the coming months.

Capesize vessels are generally classified as bulk carriers with a deadweight of 150,000-210,000 tonnes. Most vessels in this class are referred to as Dunkirk-max, with a deadweight of around 180,000 tonnes and a length of 289 meters. These vessels are 45 meters wide and have a draft of about 18 meters when fully loaded. The term Capesize originated from a time when these vessels were too large to transit the Suez Canal and Panama Canal, and instead, had to travel between oceans via either the Cape of Good Hope or Cape Horn.