Ore carrier (VLOC, Valemax)

A Very Large Ore Carrier (VLOC) is a single-purpose dry-bulk ship of roughly 200,000 to 400,000 dwt built only for the iron ore trade, with a strengthened double hull, ore holds set high and narrow over wide wing ballast tanks, and a high stowage density matched to iron ore near 0.4 cubic meters per tonne. The Valemax is the largest VLOC type at about 400,000 dwt, built to the Chinamax limits of 360 meters length, 65 meters beam, and 23 meters draft. The deep draft restricts these ships to a handful of dredged deep-water ore terminals. VLOCs cannot trade grain or coal economically because the holds suit dense ore, not bulky cargo.