BBC Chartering’s Renewable Energy Chartering Manager, Sebastian Stackelies, spoke enthusiastically to us at PES about the growth of the wind energy industry. Wind farm projects are on the increase, taking over from the decrease in the oil & gas sector. Expansion into Asia and continuing markets in North America and Europe are set to keep this experienced company very busy in the future.

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Photo by Frank Boutrup Schmidt / Vestas Wind Systems A/S

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PES: Hi Sebastian, welcome to PES Wind magazine. It’s great to be able to talk with you and get an update on BBC Chartering. We know you are involved in many industries and wondered just how important the wind sector is to you?

Sebastian Stackelies: The renewable energy sector has always been very important for BBC. As you know we have been involved in the transportation of wind turbines since the very beginning. Over the last few years, whilst the oil & gas sector weakened significantly, wind farm projects rose and still today, the sector is booming world-wide. Subsequently, wind power cargo is of immense importance to us. We believe in this sector and its ongoing growth potential.

PES: What impact has the increase of wind farm projects had in Asia?

SS: Existing manufacturing facilities, primarily in China, but also in Vietnam and Indonesia have increased their output extensively and are now running at full capacity. Moreover, new factories have opened in China, India, Malaysia and soon will in Taiwan. As the leading carrier for wind power cargo, we have seen how the increased demand for shipping has led to port congestions at several terminals throughout Asia.

PES: Have you experienced any consequences due to the sanctions imposed on China by the US?

SS: Indeed, we have seen interesting shifts in trade patterns due to this ongoing dispute. It seems that India especially benefits from this development in the wind sector. As carrier, we see increasing cargo volumes, which were obviously shipped from China before, now move from India to the US.

PES: Would you say you are optimistic about the future in these markets?

SS: Currently there are no indications of the renewable sector slowing down, and we are indeed, optimistic that the demand will continue, along with the growth of the Asian economies on the manufacturing side. While onshore development will continue to play a big role, there is an increasing number of offshore wind power developments, and we believe this side of the market will gain in momentum over the coming years.

PES: As the wind sector grows are you facing more challenges and if so, how are you overcoming them?

SS: Operating the largest and most flexible fleet in the market allows us to overcome most challenges and find solutions for even the most difficult projects. However, the main issue we face as a carrier is to deal with ever larger components; as the availability of suitable, economic transport solutions in the market becomes more limited.

PES: Which markets in Asia will be important for BBC in the coming years? How is the picture globally?

SS: Taiwan has become very active in the offshore sector and we are following the development closely. Vietnam, South Korea and Japan are also investing in offshore, but on a comparably lower scale. In general, Asia will continue to be a significant market for us, both for onshore and offshore projects.

Globally speaking, Europe & North America are still the most active markets for wind power development and also the most important markets in terms of renewables for BBC. For North America it has so far primarily been onshore wind farms, but we will see much more activity in the offshore sector soon. South America in general and in particular Australia, have also been very active throughout 2019. To round if off, Africa has been slow for some time, but we hope to see more activity in the coming years.

Overall, we are witnessing a lot of activity, which drives demand for transport services in the wind power sector. We are positive that this will keep a large share of our fleet busy for years to come.

PES: Are there any plans to open new offices in Asia?

SS: Currently we don’t have any new office openings in the pipe line, but the shipping market is in constant flux and things can change quickly. We put customer proximity first and continuously look at opportunities and customer demands, which may require expanding the network.

PES: Geographically speaking, where are your key markets and have they changed over the years?

SS: As can be seen from the global investments in wind power, our most important trades have been from Europe and The Far East to North America; we also ship a lot from Europe to South America, from the Far-East to Europe and on Intra-Asia routes.

Nevertheless, our role as a global project partner is to serve our customers where they need us. We provide transport solutions, i.e. our business is mobile by nature; hence, we go with the flow.

PES: We’d be interested to know how BBC Chartering intends to stay ahead of the competition, why should customers choose you?

SS: By choosing BBC Chartering, customers work with the most experienced team in the industry. We take care of the whole transport process: technical planning, transport engineering, loading / unloading operations; everything, including the commercial administration is done by extremely qualified, very committed and motivated people who want to make every project a success.

Sebastian Stackelies

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Additionally, it’s about our fleet, which allows us to provide our customers with a suitable shipping solution, no matter what the challenge. We operate the market’s largest and leading transport capacity in the multipurpose and heavy lift sector. We call it ‘apac service’, which stands for ‘any port, any cargo service’.

Lastly, we always comply with our high internal standards. Internal and external parties are aware of our HSEQ requirements and follow the project specific HSEQ management plan. We ensure that HSEQ guidelines are followed, that lessons learned are considered and that an improvement culture, across relevant workflows, is in place.

The result is that our customers receive the best service and performance in the market at a fair price.

PES: In the past we have spoken about

health and safety, and we know this is of paramount importance to you. Do you have any preventative measures in place?

SS: HSEQ management is a top priority at BBC Chartering. We have many preventive measures in place, most of which have been developed hand in hand with our customers, specifically, in the wind power sector. We conduct yearly health and safety meetings with our customers and do regular audits to ensure that our service matches the high expectations of our customers in this market.

PES: Moving into the second quarter of 2019, what are your predictions for the wind industry in general and your company this year?

SS: We expect that the wind sector will remain strong for the remainder of the year and thereafter. So far it has been an extremely busy year for us with regards to

wind power shipments. As the global CAPEX in this market suggests, we believe in an ongoing strong demand for our shipping solutions and further growth coming from this sector.

Now, with the IMO 2020 regulation becoming effective by January 1st 2020, all shipowners are currently busy ensuring low sulphur compliance of their vessels. This means significant investments and impacts the overall cost required to run the vessels. Eventually, this will lead to increased prices for the transportation of goods. Managing this transition into a greener and cleaner future of project shipping is a top priority for us.

BBC provides continuity, flexibility and reliability; our customers can expect the best service proposition in the market; today and in the future.

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‘BBC provides continuity, flexibility and reliability; our customers can expect the best service proposition in the market; today and in the future.’

Photo by BBC Chartering

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