Ship Vessel

Modern seagoing commercial vessels come in all shapes and sizes and are designed to carry a wide variety of cargoes. This article provides a brief overview of the main types of vessels that sail the world’s seas and gives some history on how each has evolved.

For the purposes of this article, cargoes are divided into dry, liquid and specialized, with each of these divided further into subcategories. Dry cargoes include bulk, general and breakbulk, containers, reefer and Ro-Ros. Liquid cargoes are usually oil-based but may also include chemicals and liquefied gasses. Specialized cargoes include passengers, livestock and heavy-lift/project.