Last month, I initiated a thread on BW LPG, and then subsequently commented on it.
This is a “do-over” on some aspects of the first take and certainly give me a better perspective on the business. Keep the concept of four types of vessel categories
A. Owned - 19 VLGCs
B. Charter-in - 7 VLGCs
C. BW LPG (India), a 52% owned subsidiary - 8 VLGCs
D. Operated - 10 VLGCs, 2 MGCs (will adjust in Q3)
In the OP, the presentation slides offered the suggestion that there was revenue from the shipping side (A, B, C) and a smaller “trading” side (D). That’s actually incorrect. The trading side (D) is only constrained in the margins earned. In fact, in 2023, the trading side had rev of $1722M vs $1224M for the shipping (Slide 105)
The prior year (2022), the shipping was slightly higher than “product services”/trading. The variation in the revenue between the segments, make it harder to model both revenue and margins. But, the consistent element seems to be shipping margins >> product services margins. That’s what the data from 2022 and 2023 is suggesting. And is also what BWLP’s most recent quarterly presentations suggest.
All that said, do any of the vessels in (A or B or C) slide over to [edit: the trading side? (sorta be D]. I don’t really know the answer. But, these data points seem to suggest - when analyzing BWLP, start with the shipping segment’s operating margins first. Then, drill down into other stuff.