Key takeaways
- Identify the proposed parcel rather than relying on a general product category.
- State whether each quantity describes physical shipment mass, volume or a commercial dry basis.
- Connect the cargo description to the receiver's intended use without claiming technical equivalence.
- Keep source, preparation and allocation information traceable to the material offered.
- Separate an indicative enquiry from a cargo commitment supported by current evidence.
Explain which woodchip product is being offered
FAO's AGROVOC description includes woodchips used for pulping, board production and fuel. A single material name therefore spans different uses. FAO woodchips terminology
For an enquiry, the useful next step is to identify the buyer's actual requirement. Do not infer that a parcel suitable for one customer's process will satisfy another merely because both purchase woodchips. The relevant product specification and the receiver's acceptance must relate to the particular transaction.
Ask the shipper how it describes the material and whether the enquiry concerns an existing allocated parcel or anticipated production. Where the material will be assembled from several sources, show that fact. A proposed blend or combined parcel should not be described as though it were a single already-established stock lot.
Keep the commercial use separate from transport acceptance. Knowing that a customer intends to use the chips in a particular process does not settle the vessel's cargo review. The owner still needs the appropriate information for the material actually proposed.
Make the quantity language explicit
An enquiry can become misleading when different teams use the same word tonne for different purposes. One figure might describe the material physically expected to be loaded. Another might describe the sales basis after an agreed adjustment. A volume figure may have a separate role in the owner's capacity assessment.
Label each quantity by function. State the physical shipment estimate, the commercial payment basis and any supporting volume information as separate fields. Where one is derived from another, identify the input and the party responsible for it. Do not leave the recipient to infer the conversion.
FAO's bioenergy terminology distinguishes moisture stated on wet and dry bases. A percentage needs its basis to be interpretable. FAO Unified Bioenergy Terminology
The shipping enquiry does not need to reproduce a laboratory method. It needs to identify what the submitted result means, which material it concerns and whether it supports the proposed parcel. Qualified testing and contractual quantity determinations remain separate tasks.
Ask for evidence that belongs to this parcel
Useful information is specific enough to support a decision. A generic product sheet may describe what a supplier usually produces, while the owner needs information representative of the shipment now being offered.
Request the basis of each important field. Is it measured for the allocated material, estimated from a recent comparable lot, or a provisional planning assumption? Those categories can all be useful at different stages, but they should not look equally firm.
Where the enquiry concerns future production, state what will make the description final. The owner can then identify which parts of its proposal are conditional. This is more productive than presenting an uncertain cargo description as final and discovering later that a change requires the vessel proposal to be reassessed.
Do not request a large quantity of unrelated documentation simply to make the enquiry look complete. Focus on evidence that answers a cargo, quantity, compatibility or timing question for the actual movement. A concise supported description is more useful than a long collection of documents about different parcels.
Use a completeness checklist with a purpose
| Enquiry field | What it should establish | What it should not imply |
|---|---|---|
| Material identity | The product and source description offered | Suitability for every end use |
| Parcel status | Existing allocation or anticipated production | That general stock is available to this sale |
| Physical quantity | The intended material to be shipped | Automatic vessel intake approval |
| Commercial quantity basis | How the transaction describes payable quantity | The physical mass onboard |
| Representative characteristics | The evidence supplied for owner review | An engineering conclusion by the broker |
| Receiving requirement | The actual customer's product and delivery needs | Universal terminal acceptance |
| Timing basis | When the specified parcel can be presented | A promise based only on total supplier output |
Complete the table with actual answers before circulating a firm cargo position. For an early market enquiry, mark unresolved fields clearly and ask for an indicative response that reflects those limitations.
Fictional case: the buyer and owner read different quantities
A fictional trader circulates an enquiry for woodchips using the quantity from its purchase discussion. The commercial team understands that figure as a dry-basis purchasing quantity. The vessel desk reads it as the physical cargo mass to be loaded.
The first replies therefore address a different movement from the one the trader intends. The owner is not necessarily wrong, and neither is the buyer's commercial quantity. The enquiry has failed to say what the number represents.
The trader revises the description to show the purchase basis separately from the estimated physical shipment. It identifies the supporting material information and asks the shipper to confirm the evidence that will apply to the allocated parcel. The owner then reassesses the cargo proposal using the correctly described inputs.
The team does not repair the issue by inserting a generic conversion factor. It obtains the appropriate parcel information and treats any provisional estimate as conditional. That preserves the difference between a useful early indication and a quantity the business can responsibly commit.
Keep supplier flexibility visible
A supplier may wish to preserve options over the source or preparation of a parcel. That flexibility can have value, but it also means the initial cargo description may change. State which substitutions are proposed and which parties need to reassess them.
Do not treat a substitute as automatically equivalent because its sales description is similar. The receiver may need to review commercial suitability, while vessel interests may need to review transport information. These are different decisions, and one acceptance does not replace the other.
If the supplier cannot yet identify the final material, frame the enquiry accordingly. Seek a conditional proposal and define the point at which the parcel description must become firm. This gives the desk a practical route forward without pretending uncertainty has disappeared.
Common mistakes
A common error is asking for a ship before explaining the quantity basis. The resulting proposal may be accurate for the wrong physical parcel.
Another is using an end-use label as a substitute for the product specification. Pulping, board or fuel context helps explain the transaction, but the actual receiver must assess its requirement.
A third mistake is attaching evidence from a similar historical shipment without identifying that limitation. Finally, do not conceal future source substitutions inside a description that appears final: those substitutions may change the commercial and transport review.
Where Zeaclub fits
Zeaclub provides a multi-party shared workspace for owners, charterers, brokers and port agents.
Zeaclub offers digitalised procedures across the voyage workflow.
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Educational information only; not legal, financial or trading advice. Contract wording and applicable rules control. Verify current requirements and obtain qualified advice before acting.
Frequently asked questions
Is woodchips a sufficient cargo description?
It identifies the broad material category. A useful enquiry also needs the actual parcel description, quantity basis, representative information and intended receiving requirement.
Should dry-basis purchase quantity be sent to an owner?
It can be relevant, but label it and distinguish it from the physical shipment estimate. The owner should not have to infer how the sales quantity relates to the material proposed for loading.
Can an enquiry be circulated before the parcel exists?
Yes, as an indicative enquiry with the uncertainty disclosed. State what is provisional and what evidence will be supplied before a firm commitment relies on the description.
Does receiver acceptance settle carriage suitability?
No. The receiver's commercial or process requirement and the owner's transport assessment address different questions. Obtain the appropriate confirmation for each.
Who should supply the conversion inputs?
The responsible cargo parties should provide supported parcel information, with qualified measurement or assessment where needed. The chartering desk should not replace missing evidence with an unexplained standard factor.