"Just ask the agent to sort it out." That sentence has cost shipping companies a fortune in duplicated fees and muddled responsibilities. The port agent and the ship supplier are two different roles, and treating them as interchangeable leads to overpaying, finger-pointing, and gaps where critical tasks fall between the two. Here is the clear distinction.
What a Port Agent Does
The port agent is the vessel's representative ashore. Appointed by the owner, charterer or operator, the agent handles the ship's interface with the port and authorities:
- Arranging berth, pilotage and towage;
- Handling arrival/departure formalities with customs, immigration and port authority;
- Coordinating cargo operations documentation;
- Organising crew changes, medical assistance and cash to master;
- Settling port disbursements on the owner's behalf.
This last function — managing the ship's day-to-day needs in port — is often called husbandry.
What a Ship Supplier Does
The ship supplier (chandler) provides physical goods: provisions, deck and engine stores, spare parts, safety equipment, bonded stores and fresh water. Their job ends at delivering the right goods, in the right condition, to the vessel — not at representing the ship to the port authority.
Where They Overlap (and Why That Confuses People)
- Some companies offer both agency and supply under one roof;
- An agent will often arrange supplies on behalf of the vessel — placing orders with chandlers and adding a coordination fee;
- For a small or remote port, going through the agent may genuinely be the only practical route.
The trap is paying an agent's markup on supplies you could have sourced directly. When the agent quietly inserts themselves between you and the chandler, you pay the chandler's price plus the agent's handling fee — for goods you could have ordered yourself.
When You Need Each
- Always need an agent for port formalities, berthing and authority liaison — this is non-optional.
- Source supplies directly where you can deal with verified chandlers, and reserve agent-arranged supply for ports where direct contracting is impractical.
- Separate the invoices. Insist that agency fees and supply costs are billed transparently, so you can see exactly what each is costing.
How to Stop Paying Twice
The cleanest fix is direct visibility into the supply market. When you can put a requisition in front of verified suppliers yourself and compare itemised quotes, you decide when to use the agent's convenience and when to source direct — instead of defaulting to the agent and absorbing whatever markup comes with it.
The GDS platform gives ship operators that direct line to verified suppliers, with transparent itemised quotes you control. Register your vessel to take charge of supply procurement while leaving agency to the agent.
