Crew Boat Market Report - Sept 2018

Marcon presently has the following crew boats, pilot boats and launches officially available for sale, both domestically and abroad. Others can be developed on a private and confidential basis.

Market Overview
Of the 13,325 vessels and 3,745 barges Marcon tracks, 1,116 are crew, fast supply & pilot boats with 211 officially on the market for sale, plus we have 37 boats available for charter worldwide. 39.8% of the boats officially for sale are U.S. flag. 49 crew boats for sale worldwide were built within the last 10 years. 81 boats, or 38.39%, are 25 years of age or older. The oldest boat listed is a 51', 460BHP 1961 built and located U.S. West Coast. This vessel is counterbalanced by three foreign 2018 built 39' to 131.2' LOA crewboats located in the Far East, in the Middle East and in Southeast Asia.

Offshore service vessels, including crewboats, have been selling, but only at bargain prices compared to their 2014 highs. Demand for 1980s built vessels is practically nil, with the exception of narrow regional markets where these vessels may continue to serve a purpose. 1990s built units are not doing much better, but vessels built in the late 1990s are attracting some buyers with prices around 25% of peak levels. Vessels built after 2000 and before 2008 fall somewhere in between, selling at around 25% to 33% of their 2014 highs. Even at these "bargain" prices, operators are having a tough time obtaining adequate day rates and utilization to justify buying. Some purchases of newer vessels have been mostly strategic, hoping for a market turnaround, with no near-term work in hand, and even fewer are being purchased for alternate trades. Given all the offshore support vessels, including crewboats, laid-up or underutilized, it will take time to reduce the excess capacity. When the market does improve, competition from lower priced vessels acquired during the downturn will plague those fleets with high book values and companies reorganized in bankruptcy will provide tough competition. On the bright side, the number of listings of offshore vessels available for sale has been declining. Prices of a few select vessels have increased, but trying to predict when the offshore market will see a steady comeback still remains elusive. Sea-Web reports 22 crew & pilot boats broken up, to be broken up or scuttled. 1,038 offshore support vessels of all types are also meeting this fate.

Where vessel location is known, 83 boats for sale are in the U.S., followed by 27 in Europe, 25 in Southeast Asia, 21 in Africa, 18 in the Mid-East, 9 in the Mediterranean, 7 each in the Caribbean and at undisclosed locations, 6 in Latin America, 4 in Southwest Asia and 2 each in the Far East and in the South Pacific. Of the crew, pilot boats and launches listed, the most popular engine is GM in 62 of 211 boats where engines are given, followed by 60 CATs, 58 Cummins, 9 with MAN-B&Ws, 7 MTUs and 15 other types, ranging from DAFs to Yanmars.

 

Commercial Marine Brokers since 1981