In 1959 the Burma Five Star Line was admitted to the Far East
Conference which immediately meant that Bibby's share of the
Burma trade was halved. Consequently, a ship disposal programme
was initiated and the Staffordshire (II0 was the first vessel
to be sold. Fortunately, the charter market was buoyant and
three cargo ships were ordered, the first to be delivered being
the Shropshire (II). The equity in Skyways was sold during the
following year as new and larger aircraft required a large investment
not only in finance but also in time. The Bibby management decided
to stick with the industry they knew well, shipping.
By 1961
only three ships were operating the Burma service, the Herefordshire
(II), and the passenger ships Warwickshire (II) and Leicestershire
(II). In Rangoon the local agent, Steel Bros., closed down in
1962 and was replaced by the State owned Thihi Shipping Agencies.
National Service had ended and there was no longer a need for
large scale trooping by sea. The British Government purchased
the remaining seven years of the trooping contract and the Devonshire
was sold to British India Line who renamed her Devonia as a
tribute to the ship. At the same time Bibby's were compensated
for their investment in the Oxfordshire (II) in the form of
annual payments until the contract was due to end in 1971.
The fourth new cargo ship, the
Lancashire (III) was delivered in 1963 for Burma Conference
work but also designed for chartering which became necessary
after only her first voyage. The passenger service to Colombo
and Rangoon was terminated in 1965 and the two ships, Leicestershire
(II) and Warwickshire (II), being unsuitable for charter, were
withdrawn and sold. They were replaced by two ships purchased
from Prince Line which were renamed Gloucestershire (II) and
Staffordshire (II). At the same time two new cargo ships, the
Worcestershire (III) and the Derbyshire (III), joined the fleet
to augment the charter business.
An opportunity to deploy ships
on a North Atlantic run to the St. Lawrence Seaway arose in
1966 and for this purpose Bibby's built two ships which were
then chartered for 20 years to the Britstol City Line. Because
of the length of the charter they were given names traditionally
used by the charterer, Toronto City and Coventry City. Derek
J. Bibby joined the Board of Charles Hill's Bristol City Line
which, in effect, gave Bibby's a 22% stake in the profits of
the venture.
Also in 1966 the Seabridge Shipping Ltd was incorporated by
a consortium which comprised Bibby Line Ltd., Britain Steamship
Co. Ltd (Watts, Watts & Co.), Horace Clarkson & Co.
Ltd., Silver Line Ltd. (S & J Thompson), Bowring Steamship
Co. Ltd and Furness Withy & Co. Ltd. Each member of the
consortium agreed to build bulk carriers which would be chartered
in the owner's livery to Seabridge Shipping and Bibby's contribution
was the Pacific Bridge and and the Atlantic Bridge.
The Warwickshire (III) joined the charter fleet in 1967 and,
ever mindful of new opportunities, Bibby's acquired the Wiltshire
in the following year. She was liquid petroleum gas carrier
(LPG) and had been ordered for George Gibson & Co. of Leith
to service a charter which, in the event, didn't materialise.
Without the charter Gibson couldn't afford the investment so
Bibby's took the plunge and purchased the completed ship which
they then chartered to George Gibson who, in turn, chartered
her to Gazocean S. A. of Paris for three years. To diversify
further, in 1968 Bibby's also ordered three ships capable of
carrying both motor vehicles and bulk cargoes. The first to
join the fleet was the Berkshire, followed by the Cheshire (IV)
and the Oxfordshire (III).
Finally in 1968 Bibby's took
over the Britain Steamship Co. but only acquired the company's
Seabridge cointribution, the Westminster Bridge, as the rest
of the fleet had already been sold. The acquisition brought
Bibby's contribution to Seabridge to three and with Houlder
Bros. and Hunting & Sons Ltd joining the consortium the
fleet expanded to 12 ships. Two years later two ore-bulk-ore
(OBO) carriers were built for Seabridge with Bibby's inheriting
Ocean Bridge and Horace Clark the other.
In 1971 war between India and
Parkistan decimated the small amount of trade left with Burma
and, as a result, the last 'Burma' boat, the Gloucestershire
(III) was sold for further trading. At the same time, Bibby's
concluded their activities in Rangoon and so ended a service
which had been the mainstay of their business for over eighty
years. In February of 1971 the company acquired a 51% controlling
interest in Charles Hill's Bristol City Line for £1,200,000
adding the Halifax City and the Montreal City to their fleet.
More importantly, however, the Bristol City Line had been a
third partner in the Dart Container Line with Cie Maritime Belge
and Clarke Traffic Services since 1969. One ship, the Dart Atlantic
was owned and the second ship, the Dart America, was managed
for owners Clarke Traffic Services of Montreal. However, the
Dart Atlantic enabled Bibby's to enter the competitive container
field.
Bibby's last two conventional
cargo ships, the Herefordshire (III) and the Lancashire (III)
were delivered in 1971 and the fleet then consisted of 14 ships
with no fewer than 10 more on order - 3 LPG's, 3 OBO's, 2 builkers
and 2 cargo vessels.
Three further bulk carriers were required for Seabridge in 1972
and Bibby's agreed to contribute one, and as a result, the English
Bridge joined the fleet. The LPG carrier Wiltshire was proving
to be succesful and to capitalise on the success the larger
LPG carrier Lincolnshire was built and a further two ordered.
In October of 1972 the remaining 49% of the Bristol City Line
was acquired for £275,000.
Bibby's contributed yet another OBO to Seabridge in 1973 and
with the arrival of Australian Bridge the Westminster Bridge
was sold. In October of that year Egypt and Syria attacked Israel
in the Yom Kippur war which destabilised the Middle East and
provoked an oil crisis causing prices to rise fourfold. A huge
number of ships became uneconomical overnight as rising freight
rates failed to offset the increased fuel prices.
In 1974 the two new LPG's, Hampshire
and Dorsetshire joined the fleet. To meet a short term commitment
the Tenbury was purchased but only remained with the company
for six months. At this time the size of the fleet peaked at
24 ships. The company had never owned an oil tanker and in the
following year the Yorkshire (IV), a three product carrier,
was delivered but, at the same time, the future was becoming
a problem. When she joined the fleet it comprised 20 ships totalling
in excess of 1,000,000 gross tons but at a time when there was
a marked decline in British shipowning. The policy of diversification
was intended to ensure survival if recession hit one aspect
of the trade but it was no guarantee if recession hit all aspects
of the industry.
The largest ship Bibby ever owned,
the 91,000grt Liverpool Bridge, was delivered in 1976 for the
Seabridge consortium but the world trade recession was already
causing problems. Contractual freight rates were higher that
those prevailing and Seabridge was forced to agree to those
being renegotiated. As a result, instead of being a profitable
diversification for Bibby's it became a loss maker. Clarkson's
was the first company to withdraw and, as this merely spread
the load onto other members, Bibby Line Ltd withdrew in 1977
taking their three ships with them. The Atlantic Bridge was
renamed Dorsetshire, the Mersey Bridge became the Cambridgeshire
and Liverpool Bridge, the Derbyshire and all three were immediately
laid up. Another setback befell the company in October 1976
when the new LPG carrier, Staffordshire, was laid up immediately
she was completed. She was built to carry gas from Saudia Arabia
to the USA but the processing plant built for the project was
years behind schedule.
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