The American Bureau of Shipping, which classifies vessels for their operating safety, last year raised the need to address safety issues such as structural integrity and maintenance challenges around the global fleet of FPSOs, with over 50 of them reaching the end of their design life in the next five years. More than half are over 30 years old and a quarter over 40 years old. 

Eoin Treacy's view

Aging infrastructure is rarely the top priority for producers. The oil sector is reluctant to commit capital at present because there is a lot of uncertainty about how those investments will be viewed by both investors and the media. 

There is a pervasive sense of doom at the future of the oil sector. No one wants to sign a contract for pieces of infrastructure with a high upfront cost, providing a service which may not be needed in future. As storage containers for crude age out, they may not all be replaced. That suggests we are looking at greater potential for volatility in the oil market than is currently viewed as possible. 

The major ship building stocks like Mitsubishi Heavy and Samsung Heavy Industries remain in lengthy base formations. 

That also supports the value of the ships currently in service. The Baltic Dry Index continues to recover following a steep decline. That probably has more to do with the end of the Winter Olympics and the potential for the China to import more raw materials as processing facilities and coal fired power stations start back up.