Ida, Frieda, Frederike, Helene, Mimi and Therese, all with the ‘family’ name Selmer, are heavy ladies with a total combined tonnage of 320,270 dwt. The vessels are either just delivered or under construction in Japan. All the new bulk carriers are to DNV class. Oskar Wehr Reederei is a leading German shipowner currently trading a total of 20 vessels – 18 container vessels, and two bulk carriers, with an additional four bulk carriers to be delivered shortly.

“We have been in the bulk carrier trade for a long time, but sold the older tonnage we had and our fleet now only comprises new ships,” says Dieter Grundmann, Senior Fleet Director at Oskar Wehr. “We build all our new vessels in Japan, and we are very satisfied with the quality and on time deliveries we get in Japan. Typically, when we have a test run of a new ship not built in Japan, there are some 2–300 items which need some sort of adjustment before delivery and in Japan this number is only maybe some 20 to 30 items. It is quite easy to work with the Japanese yards as long as we stick mainly to their standard designs and do not require too many changes or special design solutions,” says Grundmann. “I like the pride the Japanese put into their work – we always get good ships and are not considering building in other countries right now.”
With bulk carrier rates at a consistent high level, the timing of the newbuildings seems to be excellent.
We asked “Why DNV class on the bulk carriers?”. Grundmann says: “First of all you have a bulk carrier expert called Christian Strobel. His knowledge and positive attitude towards us as a customer is outstanding. Secondly the DNV performance is on a high level, including at the Hamburg Ship Service centre.”
Magne.A.Roe@dnv.com

Date: 12 February 2008