Vessel Sharing Agreement

The author discusses the need for container vessel operators to establish various types of cooperative agreements. In joint liner service performance, the most frequently used cooperative understanding is the vessel sharing agreement (VSA). The author offers detailed descriptions of basic VSA-style compact principles and advantages. A case study also is presented describing a VSA-based joint service performed by two owners. The case study includes parameter calculations relevant to container liner service operation and slot costs. A general model for slot cost calculation also is presented by the author.