Safe Bulkers, Inc. (Safe Bulkers) is an international provider of marine drybulk transportation services.
The company owns and operates a modern and diverse fleet of dry bulk vessels, transporting bulk cargoes, particularly coal, grain and iron ore, along worldwide shipping routes for some of the world’s largest consumers of marine drybulk transportation services. As of February 28, 2025, the company had a fleet of 46 drybulk vessels, with an aggregate carrying capacity of 4,641,600 dwt.
As of...
Safe Bulkers, Inc. (Safe Bulkers) is an international provider of marine drybulk transportation services.
The company owns and operates a modern and diverse fleet of dry bulk vessels, transporting bulk cargoes, particularly coal, grain and iron ore, along worldwide shipping routes for some of the world’s largest consumers of marine drybulk transportation services. As of February 28, 2025, the company had a fleet of 46 drybulk vessels, with an aggregate carrying capacity of 4,641,600 dwt.
As of December 31, 2024, Safe Bulkers held 72 wholly owned companies (which are referred to herein as “Subsidiaries”), which together owned and operated a fleet of 46 drybulk vessels and were scheduled to acquire seven additional newbuild vessels (the “Newbuilds”).
The company employs its vessels on both period time charters and spot time charters, according to its assessment of market conditions, with some of the world’s largest consumers of marine drybulk transportation services. The company is focused on owning a modern, well-maintained fleet with the best designs in the shipping dry-bulk sector, targeting to reduce the environmental impact from its operations.
As of February 28, 2025, the company’s fleet consisted of 46 vessels, 11 of which are eco-ships built after 2014, with superior energy efficiency characteristics compared to pre-2014 designs, and 11 vessels built from 2022 onwards, compliant with the most recent International Maritime Organization (‘IMO’) greenhouse gas (‘GHG’) Phase 3 - NOx Tier III regulations. In addition, the company's outstanding orderbook consists of seven newbuilds compliant with the IMO GHG Phase 3 - NOx Tier III regulations, including two methanol dual-fueled vessels, to be delivered one in 2025, four in 2026, and two in 2027, and following all scheduled deliveries, reaching 29 vessels with improved energy efficiency characteristics.
During the last three years, and until February 28, 2025, the company has sold or contracted to sell 14 vessels with total deadweight of 1.11 million tonnes and of 14.5 years average age and acquired seven second-hand vessels with total deadweight of 0.97 million tonnes and of 9.2 years average age.
In parallel, and as of February 28, 2025, the company had completed environmental upgrades on 25 vessels through an extensive vessel environmental upgrade program, which involves the application of low friction paints and the installation of energy-saving devices. While the company is investing in newbuilds, relatively young second-hand vessels, and environmental upgrades, it continues to monitor technological developments in relation to new environmentally friendly alternative marine fuels, which are expected to play an increasingly important role in the next decade.
As of February 28, 2025, the company had installed scrubbers on 21 of its vessels, including all eight of its Capesize class vessels, effectively reducing SOx emissions compared to sulfur content (''VLSFO'') and capitalizing on its scrubber investments in relation to the price differential between VLSFO and heavy fuel oil with sulfur content of 3.5% (''HSFO''). The total cost of the scrubber investments, which the company estimates it has already recovered through the additional earnings of the scrubber-fitted vessels. As of February 28, 2025, the company had retrofitted its entire fleet with ballast water treatment systems (‘BWTS’).
As of February 28, 2025, the company’s fleet consisted of 46 vessels, of which 8 are Panamax class vessels, 13 are Kamsarmax class vessels, 17 are Post-Panamax class vessels, and 8 are Capesize class vessels, with an aggregate carrying capacity of 4,641,600 dwt and an average age of 10.1 years.
The company’s orderbook consists of seven environmentally advanced Japanese and Chinese Kamsarmax class newbuild vessels, including two methanol dual-fueled vessels, with scheduled deliveries one in the remainder of 2025, four in 2026, and two in 2027. All seven newbuilds are designed to comply with the requirements of the IMO for Energy Efficiency Design Index (‘EEDI’) Phase 3 and NOx Tier III. Assuming no additional vessel sales occur for any of its vessels and the delivery of all seven contracted newbuild vessels through 2027 as scheduled, its fleet will comprise 8 Panamax class vessels, 20 Kamsarmax class vessels, 17 Post-Panamax class vessels, and 8 Capesize class vessels, and the aggregate carrying capacity of its 53 vessels will be 5,213,400 dwt. The majority of vessels in the company’s fleet have sister ships with similar specifications.
The company’s vessels are used to transport bulk cargoes, particularly coal, grain, and iron ore, along worldwide shipping routes. It may employ its vessels in time charters or in voyage charters.
The company intends to employ its vessels on both period time charters and spot time charters, according to its assessment of market conditions, with some of the world’s largest consumers of marine drybulk transportation services. As of February 28, 2025, the average remaining duration of the charters for its existing fleet was 0.6 years.
Customers
Since 2005, the company’s customers have included over 30 national, regional, and international companies, including Bunge, Cargill, Glencore, Daiichi, Intermare Transport G.m.b.H., Energy Eastern Pte. Ltd., NYK, NS United Kaiun Kaisha, Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Oldendorff GmbH and Co. KG, Louis Dreyfus Armateurs, Louis Dreyfus Commodities, ArcelorMittal or their affiliates. During 2024, two of the company’s charterers, namely Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha and Cargill International S.A., accounted for 24.51% of its revenues, with each one accounting for more than 10.0% of total revenues. The company seeks to charter its vessels primarily to charterers who intend to use its vessels without sub-chartering them to third parties.
Management of The company’s Fleet
The company’s affiliated management companies, Safety Management Overseas S.A., a company incorporated under the laws of the Republic of Panama (‘Safety Management’), and Safe Bulkers Management Limited, a company organized and existing under the laws of the Republic of Cyprus (‘Safe Bulkers Management’), are each sometimes referred to as a ‘Manager’. Safe Bulkers Management Monaco Inc., a company incorporated under the laws of the Republic of the Marshall Islands (‘Safe Bulkers Management Monaco’), is sometimes referred to as the ‘New Manager,’ and together with Safety Management and Safe Bulkers Management, its ‘Managers.’
In May 2008, the company entered into a management agreement with Safety Management, and in May 2015, it entered into a management agreement with Safe Bulkers Management, pursuant to which the company’s Managers provided it with executive officers, technical, administrative, commercial, and certain other services. Each of these management agreements expired on May 28, 2018. In May 2018, the company entered into new management agreements (the ‘Original Management Agreements’), pursuant to which the company’s Managers continue to provide it with technical, administrative, commercial, and certain other services. Each of the Original Management Agreements was effective as of May 29, 2018, and had an initial three-year term that could be extended on a three-year basis on May 29, 2021, and May 29, 2024, upon mutual agreement with the Managers. On May 29, 2021, the company and the Managers agreed to extend the term of the Original Management Agreements until May 28, 2024. On April 1, 2022, the company entered into a new management agreement with the New Manager, and together with the Original Management Agreements, the ‘Management Agreements’, with the initial term that expired on May 29, 2024. The Management Agreements were extended for an additional three-year period, subject to its ability to terminate each Management Agreement upon written notice at least 24 months prior to the end of the current term.
Regulations: Safety and the Environment
A variety of governmental and private entities subject the company’s vessels to both scheduled and unscheduled inspections. These entities include local port authorities (such as the US Coast Guard, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority - AMSA, the China Maritime Safety Administration – MSA, other Port State Controls, and the harbor master or equivalent where it calls), classification societies, flag state administration (country of registry), charterers, and terminal operators.
The company, as part of the International Safety Management (the ‘ISM’) compliance, has implemented within 2024 voluntarily an Integrated Management System, (‘IMS’), in compliance with DryBMS standards, replacing the existing Safety Management Systems ‘SMS’, focusing on crew welfare, Code of Conduct, and targeting higher levels of performance in terms of safety, health, security, and pollution prevention of its fleet. The Managers are certified with ISO 14001 and ISO 50001 relating to environmental standards and energy efficiency respectively, while the company has obtained additional environmental class notation for most of its fleet.
The company complies with all provisions of Tier III emissions regulation of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (‘MARPOL’) Annex I and has developed crew training sessions, managerial procedures, regular reviews, and inspections to ensure such compliance by its vessels. Violation of MARPOL Annex I would have a material adverse effect on its business, financial condition, and results of operations, and would affect its reputation. The company complies with all provisions of MARPOL Annex IV and regularly conducts reviews and inspections to ensure such compliance with its vessels. It complies with all provisions of MARPOL Annex V and regularly conducts reviews and inspections to ensure such compliance with its vessels.
The operation of the company’s vessels is affected by the requirements set forth in the International Safety Management (the ‘ISM’) Code. The company’s Managers have the requisite documents of compliance and safety management certificates for each of the vessels in its fleet for which the certificates are required by the IMO. The company’s Managers are required to renew these documents of compliance and safety management certificates every five years. Compliance is externally verified on an annual basis for the Managers and between the second and third years for each vessel by the applicable flag state. Although all the company’s vessels are ISM Code-certified, such certification may not always be maintained by all its vessels.
The company has submitted Notices of Intent (a ‘NOI’) for its vessels operating in the U.S. waters and anticipates incurring costs to meet the requirements of the U.S. Vessel General Permit (the ‘VGP’).
Only a part of the company’s trade is done from, to, and within the EU, and as a consequence, the EU GHG regulations are expected to have lesser impact compared to IMO GHG regulations, which will be implemented after 2027. However, as the company’s fleet is renewed with energy-efficient Phase 3 vessels, and the energy efficiency of existing vessels is improved through an extensive environmental upgrading program, it expects that from January 1, 2025, the implementation of FuelEU will start, and the trade covered by EU regulations will increase.
The company has implemented the various security measures addressed by the IMO, the Safety of Life at Sea (‘SOLAS’), and the International Ship and Port Facilities Security Code (the ‘ISPS Code’), and it has approved the International Ship Port-facility Security (the ‘ISPS’) certificates and plans on board all of its vessels, which have been certified by the applicable flag state.
In response to the above cyber security resolution, the company is performing cyber security risk assessments for its vessels and is gradually implementing additional measures and training, and has incorporated the cyber risk management system into the IMS.
The International Labour Organization’s Maritime Labour Convention was adopted in 2006 (the ‘MLC 2006’). The MLC 2006 was ratified on August 20, 2012, and all of its vessels were certified by August 2013, as required. The company intends to comply with all relevant Economic Substance Regulation (ESR) reporting requirements.
As of June 1, 2024, the company had voluntarily implemented a new computerized Integrated Management System (‘IMS’) in compliance with DryBMS Standards, which replaces the existing SMS, and is in line with Rightship, focusing on crew welfare and code of conduct, and ensuring the competence and commitment to the highest level of standards of its staff and fleet. The implementation of the new IMS requires continuous intensive training of its crew and shore personnel, as well as increased operational costs.
History
Safe Bulkers, Inc. was founded in 2007. The company was incorporated in the Republic of the Marshall Islands in 2007 under the Marshall Islands Business Corporations Act.