The decline in trade continued into 1978 and by April seven
out of the Bibby fleet of 22 were laid up and like so many shipping
companies the company was experiencing cash flow problems due
to loan repayments on recent new buildings having to be paid.
Five ships were mortgaged to finance brokers but the cost of
doing so exceeded the loan repayments. Interest payments more
than exceeded the trading profits and a loss of £13.5
million was incurred. The Board's main concern was the company's
survival and the way out was to sell ships if only to raise
sufficient cash to offset the interest due. The Australian Bridge,
the Canadian Bridge, the English Bridge and the Oxfordshire
were subsequently sold and the residue of the outstanding loans
rescheduled with the banks and the Government. By 1979 the Dart
Container Line was also incurring losses so Bibby's sold their
interest to C. Y. Tung of Hong Kong who had just acquired Furness,
Withy & Co., another partner in Dart.
In 1980
Bibby's suffered a major loss when the Derbyshire (III) tragically
disappeared during a typhoon in the China Sea. Loaded with iron
ore and bound for Japan it was assumed that she was overwhelmed
by the force of nature and there is more information about the
incident in the ship history. At the end of 1982 the fleet consisted
of just nine ships.
The company ventured into the
oil industry and the Aberdeen based oil engineering group Empac
when, in 1982 and through Consafe Engineering (UK) Ltd, they
acquired a 20% interest in the Swedish Consafe consortium. The
consortium owned the semi-submersible North Sea accommodation
platform Safe Holmia which they charterd to oil exploration
companies. In 1983 Bibby's acquired a 50% share in the accommodation
barge Safe Dominia which was chartered by the Ministry of Defence
to house troops of the Falkland Islands garrison. A sister unit,
the Safe Esperia, was also under construction for subsequent
charter to the Ministry of Defence. At the same time ship disposals
continued and the Cambrigeshire and the former car carriers
Berkshire and Cheshire (IV) were sold.
By 1984 ship management was being
widely used by shipowners and Bibby's ventured into this field,
their first client being the Shipping Corporation of Trinidad
& Tobago. In April of that year the company made the most
fundamental change in its 170 year history when it transferred
the registry of four LPGs to Hong Kong. The move caused a reaction
from the National Union of Seamen who staged a five hour sit-in
strike at the Liverpool office. From then on the deck crews
became Chinese and officers were supplied by agencies rather
than being recruited in Liverpool. The savings made were sufficient
to keep the company afloat during difficult time. During the
year Bibby's last conventional cargo ship, the Warwickshire
(III) was sold and only specialist ships remained.
Head Office at 105 Duke Street, Liverpool
Consafe went into liquidation
in 1985 and the Safe Holmia was sold to the Swedish Government.
However, Bibby's purchased the accommodation barges from the
receiver and renamed them Bibby Venture and the Bibby Resolution.
In 1987 the Safe Bristolia, another Consafe accommodation barge,
was acquired and renamed Bibby Endeavour. At the same time the
company took a 70% interest in another type of accommodation
barge, the self elevating jack up Marinia, which was deployed
of East Malaysia. The New York Department of Correction chartered
the Bibby Venture and the Bibby Resolution for an initial 5
year period to accommodate remand prisoners.
Also, in 1987, the Devonshire, the Staffordshire, the Hampshire
and the Lincolnshire were transferred to the Bibby controlled
Manx Ship Management in Douglas, Isle of Man so that the company
could employ its staff on 'off-shore' contracts and manage British
flagged ships. The day to day management of the company remained
in Liverpool. In the following year Northern Manpower Services
of Liverpool was acquired to compliment Bibby's involvement
in the oil industry.
To reflect the changing of activities
of the company the Holding Company's name was changed to Bibby
Line Group Ltd. in 1989 although the shipping interest remained
within Bibby Line Ltd. The Head Office remained at 105 Duke
Street, Liverpool. The company's first new ship for twelve years,
the Cheshire (V), was delivered in 1989. Built in Belgium with
attractive Government terms she began her career on a three
year contract flying the Belgian flag. The Freeport Chief, a
petroleum mixed product tanker, was also acquired and renamed
Dorsetshire (III).
On 11th January 1990 the company
acquired a 50% holding in Botany Bay Shipping Holdings of Sydney
with the objective of developing a new chemical tanker pool
to initially manage 11 ships. As part of the arrangement Bibby's
were requested to to build two new parcel tankers and possibly
a third when requested. It was also intended to have offices
in Houston and London.
In 1991 the Isle of Man management
company was renamed Bibby International Services (IOM) Ltd.
The entire seagoing fleet was brought within its control but
in single ship companies in order to reflect their various trading
charters. By 1995 the seagoing fleet comprised five ships but
only the Cheshire, which was registered in the Isle of Man,
flew the red ensign; the Lincolnshire and the Shropshire were
registered in the Bahamas, the Herefordshire in Panama and the
Staffordshire in Hong Kong.
The company still maintains a
growing interest in floating mobile accommodation and the oil
industry, the latest involvement being a joint venture with
the Doha Marine Services of Qatar deploying the DMS Venture.
At the start of the third millennium
the Bibby Group, having survived wars, booms and slumps for
nearly 200 years, has diversified and adapted to the changes
within the shipping industry. As the company approaches its
bicentenary trading activities now include the following:-
The operation of Liquefied
Petroleum Gas Carriers
The operation of Chemical Parcel Tankers
The provision of Ship Management services
The operation of shallow water accommodation units (Coastels)
The provision of Offshore Oil Services
The provision of Contract Logistics or Distribution services
The provision of Debt Factoring service
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