About Bulkargo
An independent ship brokerage and dry-bulk chartering desk. We match cargo with vessels, negotiate the charter, and stay with the fixture from inquiry to settlement.
- Founded
- 2022
- Offices
- Panama City · Bogotá
- Response
- Within one business day
Who we are
Bulkargo is an independent ship brokerage. We sit between cargo owners and vessel owners, negotiate the charter that moves the cargo, and stay with the fixture from inquiry through post-fixture demurrage settlement. We do not own vessels.
Founded in 2022, led by a trading team with more than 30 years in dry-bulk commodities. Bulkargo LLC operates from Panama City and Bogotá.
The business model
Cargo owners
Producers, traders, and industrial buyers with bulk cargo to move.
Bulkargo
Independent broker. We match the cargo with the vessel, negotiate the charter, and stay with the fixture through settlement.
Vessel owners
Owners, operators, and disponent owners across the world fleet.
We do not own vessels. We are not the in-house brokerage of a fleet. We do not broker container freight or scheduled RoRo, and we do not handle sale-and-purchase brokerage as a primary service. Our service is ship chartering, voyage by voyage or under programme contracts.
What we do
We charter across the major cargo categories of the bulk and tanker markets. Each desk below has its own page with vessel classes, cargo detail, and route coverage.
We negotiate across all standard charter modalities: voyage charter, time charter, contract of affreightment (COA), spot, consecutive voyages, and bareboat. Modality choice is part of the work we do at the inquiry stage.
We also accept formal retainer and project-based advisory engagements: market analysis and rate forecasting, charter strategy work, fleet and route optimisation, market-entry guidance, and charter party or demurrage reviews. These run on scoped retainer terms separate from execution work. To start one, use the quote form and flag the inquiry type in the message field.
Dry Cargo
Coal, iron ore, grain, cement, fertilizer, bauxite, steel, scrap, and the rest of the dry bulk basket. Capesize down to mini-bulker.
Learn moreTankers
Crude, clean and dirty petroleum products, vegetable oils. VLCC, Suezmax, Aframax, LR1/LR2, MR, and coated Handysize tonnage.
Learn moreProject Cargo & Break Bulk
Heavy-lift, oversized, and general cargo on multi-purpose, heavy-lift, and tweendecker vessels.
Learn moreSpecialised Products
Chemicals, parcel cargoes, base oils, biofuels, and coated/stainless steel tank cargoes.
Learn moreOur team
Three heads run the desk: trading and chartering, commodities, and technology.
Manuel Alvarez
Civil engineer (Universidad EIA) with over 8 years sourcing and trading bitumen, oil products, and construction materials for infrastructure projects, with cargoes across the Caribbean, Middle East, and Southeast Asia.
Luis Carlos Alvarez
More than 30 years trading dry-bulk commodities, including wheat, fishmeal, salt, urea, and livestock feeds, with extensive experience in heavy machinery and RoRo shipments.
Luis Felipe Alvarez
Leads Bulkargo's technology and digital operations. Background in IT and digital operations management, M&A transactions, and SEO and content strategy across Latin America.
How we work
Bulkargo is a current-generation brokerage. We use the standard industry tools (sale-and-purchase platforms, fixture databases, AIS tracking). The desk typically responds within one business day.
Our standard process runs from initial inquiry through six steps to fixture and post-fixture support. For the detailed walkthrough see How It Works.
Values
Client alignment
We are an independent broker. The vessel we recommend is the one that fits your cargo, not the one we need to keep employed.
Technical work upfront
Cargo assessment, vessel matching, and contract review are done properly on every fixture. Headline rate is one input, not the only one.
Stay with the fixture
Post-fixture demurrage settlement, owner correspondence, and dispute support are part of the standard service, not extras.
Plain communication
We tell you what we see in the market: including when the answer is "wait" or "this is a poor structure for your cargo." We do not push fixtures.
Cargoes we have fixed since 2022
- Cement
- Quicklime
- Bitumen
- Project cargo
- Machinery
- Mining ores and earths
Ready to fix?
Tell us about your cargo. A broker will respond the same business day with an initial market read and next steps.