STUDY OF HYDRO-METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS AND FUEL CONSUMPTION ON THE USUAL TRADING ROUTES OF VLCC (VERY LARGE CRUDE CARRIERS

In this paper will be introduced some of the usual worldwide navigation routes of VLCC type vessels, with
presentation of the data collected by the author on the voyages made by a ship with DWT = 307284 tons, during the period December 2015 – December 2018. For reasons of relevance, trips to the high seas lasting more than 7 days were chosen as much as possible. The objective is to investigate the usual hydro-meteorological conditions on some of the main trading patterns of the VLCC - Very Large Crude Carriers, (vessels intended for the transport of crude oil, with a carrying capacity of approximately two million barrels, DWT approximately 270000 - 330000 tons). Diagrams and tables with data collected are also presented. This may be of further assistance in studying the opportunities of using renewable energy sources, in particular the wind one, in order to improve the energy efficiency of such voyages.