Shipping lines are warned today prices for ship repair operations could double in the coming months as a huge backlog of work gets underway with lockdown restrictions easing.
Data from Hamburg-based shipyard matchmaking platform Trusteddocks shows demand for ship repair is set to soar in the second half of the year as delayed dockings get underway.
“Our Ship Repair Index predicts a very competitive market once activities fully resume,” said Carsten Bullemer, founder and CEO of Trusteddocks.
“A backlog demand has resulted from the dramatic fall in shipyard activities over the first half of the year, and this will cause capacity shortages in the coming months.”
The index, updated weekly, measures activity of the world’s top repair yards. As of June 28, it was down 22% compared to the same time in 2019.
Bullemer said he expects difficulties especially in the area of class renewals and scrubber retrofits.
“A lot of ships will now need to be docked, and you don’t need a crystal ball to foresee that, bottom line, shipyard prices can only go up,” Bullemer said.
When pressed by Splash to estimate by how much prices would increase for the remainder of the year, Bullemer predicted anywhere between 50 and 100%.
