Marine Bulk Carriers (Pty) Ltd (MBC) was established by Robert Knutzen (ex CEO of the Golden Ocean Group), Jan Rabie (ex Director of Safmarine) and Mark Watson in 2003 in order to give South Africa additional participation in the shipping of bulk cargo to and from the country. The company focuses on chartering dry bulk carriers and moving dry bulk cargo, mainly iron ore and coal.

Shortly after inception Lester Peteni (Managing Director Sizwe Shipping Investments) joined Marine Bulk Carriers as Chairman. MBC is a 40% black empowered company.

The establishment of MBC, and its sister company, Marine Crew Services South Africa (Pty) Ltd, was in order to ensure a greater share for South Africa in the bulk shipping business, as well as to develop and place South African seafarers with international owners and ship management companies, and, in doing so, to help create job opportunities for South Africans in the maritime world.

Ground breaking agreements:
Towards the end of 2005 Marine Bulk Carriers (MBC) and Sanko Steamship Co., Ltd concluded their first major charter agreements for two Sanko vessels to Kumba Resources and BP Shipping respectively. Kumba Resources, the South African iron ore exporter, chartered the 150 960 dwt Sanko vessel, 'Sanko Spark' and the 298 920 dwt Sanko owned VLCC 'Sanko Unity' went to BP Shipping for 12 months employment.

More recent developments:
More recently MBC took over the commercial management of two Cape-size vessels, the 150 960 ton ‘Sanko Spark’ and the 161 190 ton Cape size vessel ‘Sanko Oasis’.

MBC also independently chartered two Panamax size vessels, the ‘Elinakos’, of 73 750 tons for a period of two years and the ‘Golden Kiji’ (76 600 tons) for one year, in order to give it more options for extending its business in the bulk shipping market.

At the start of 2008 MBC successfully negotiated its second anchor handling contract with PetroSA when the Norwegian built and Russian owned anchor handling tug, EEMS, and the Norwegian tug, Ocean Supporter, took up contracts with PetroSA in support of the oil rig, Pride of South Seas, in drilling operations in the oil fields along the Southern Cape coast.

2003
Marine Bulk Carriers (Pty) Ltd (MBC) is established by Robert Knutzen (ex CEO of the Golden Ocean Group), Jan Rabie (ex Director of Safmarine) and Mark Watson to give South Africa entry into the shipping of cargo to and from the country.

Shortly after inception Lester Peteni (Managing Director Sizwe Shipping Investments) joined Marine Crew Services as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer respectively.

April 2005
The Sanko Steamship Co. Ltd of Tokyo, Japan (Sanko) announces its strategic financial investment in Marine Bulk Carriers South Africa Ltd (MBC), and its sister company, Marine Crew Services South Africa Ltd (MCS). Sanko becomes a 20% shareholder in MBC and this gives MBC access to Sanko's fleet of more than 100 vessels.

July 2005
Marine Bulk Carriers wins an important tender with state-owned PetroSA. Through a ground breaking agreement with Eastern Shipping of India, MBC supplies an anchor handling tug supply vessel for service in PetroSA’s Sable Oil Field along South Africa’s Southern Cape Coast. The ‘Malaviya Twenty One’ went into service in July 2005 when she escorted the oil rig, Pride South Seas, from Cape Town to its drilling position along the South African southern coast.

November 2005
MBC and Sanko partnership concluded further charter agreements for two Sanko vessels to Kumba Resources and BP Shipping respectively. Kumba Resources, the South African iron ore exporter, chartered the 150960 dwt Sanko owned Cape 'Sanko Spark' and the 298920 dwt Sanko owned VLCC 'Sanko Unity' went to BP Shipping for 12 months employment.

January 2006
The 'Sanko Spark' loads first MBC cargo in terms of the new agreements in Saldanha Bay in January 2006 and discharged 150000 tons of iron ore successfully in the Chinese port of Yantai in early February. This was followed in May 2006 by the ‘Bosporos’ with a voyage charter to Sasol Coal for a cargo of 150000 tons from Richards Bay to Redcar in the United Kingdom.

August 2006
Further fixtures by MBC in the spot market include the Cape-size vessel 'Nisshin Trader' and the 'Sanko Oasis' and the Handies 'Sunny Globe' and 'Sanko Jupiter'. MBC is now also responsible for the commercial employment of the Cape vessel 'Sanko Spark', while 'Sanko Unity' continues its employment with BP.

July 2007
MBC concludes its very successful contract to PetroSA to supply the anchor handling supply vessel Malaviya Twenty One to the giant oil rig, 'Pride South Seas', off the Cape Coast. The ‘Malaviya Twenty One’ is re-assigned to Tullow Oil for work in the Kudu Field off Namibia and then handed back to its owners.

August 2007
MBC expands its interests in the international bulk shipping business by adding three more vessels to those already under its commercial management. Sanko Steamship Company of Japan places another Cape size vessel, the 162 000 ton Cape size vessel ‘Sanko Oasis’, under full commercial management by MBC. MBC also independently charters the Panamax size vessels, the ‘Elinakos’, of 73,780 tons for a period of two years, and the ‘Golden Kiji’ for one year in order to give it more options for extending its business in the bulk shipping market.

November 2007
MBC now has an annual turnover of R400 million. Lester Peteni, Company chairman and major shareholder says “While the world shipping markets are at an all time peak driven by the commodity boom and imports to China, MBC has been able to establish itself as a mover in the bulk business.

March 2008
Cape Town based BEE shipping company, Marine Bulk Carriers, clinches two new anchor-handling contracts with PetroSA involving two powerful tugs to provide assistance to the oilrig Pride South Seas in the oilfields along South Africa’s Southern Coast.

The two tugs, the 12600 horse-power Eems, and the 10880 horse-power Ocean Supporter, started their 500 day contracts with PetroSA March in 2008. The Eems is chartered by MBC from Femco Management (Ltd), a company based on the Russian east coast island of Sachalin, north of Japan, while the Ocean Supporter was deployed in South African waters in a charter arrangement with the Norwegian company Oceanlink.