Berth charter

A berth charter is a voyage charter under which laytime begins only when the vessel reaches the agreed berth, not on arrival at the port limits. It contrasts with a port charter, where the ship becomes an arrived ship once inside the port and ready, even if no berth is free. Under a berth charter the owner carries the risk of port congestion and waiting time, since hire-equivalent earnings stop until the ship is actually alongside. The distinction was settled in The Johanna Oldendorff and turns on the wording of the charter party’s loading and discharge clauses.