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Alternative Economics in Traveller It is no accident that the Imperium will subsidize merchant hulls with extended jump range, Jump 3 vessels (being the most wildly recognized). These higher performance vessels are more expensive to build and also lose a greater proportion of their interior space to larger drives along with the bigger fuel tanks needed to support the Jump drive. This means that there is less space available to cargo or passenger transport with the result that the vessel's revenue generating potential is severely reduced when compared to lower jump rated vessels. Also Imperial Tradition with its strange per parsec rates charged for transport of goods and passengers per single jump means that all vessels charge the same price for the same amount of time the goods spend in the hold. Thus higher performance vessels can't easily charge more for a longer range trip than a lower performance merchant would for equivalent time in the hold. This is advantageous to the shipper but not the ship owner. Examining these economic rules means that only an idiot would purchase a vessel with performance greater than 1 parsec per jump due to the fact that the increased investment would not result in an increase in profits.
Thus the fixed price model of interstellar commerce as exhibited within the Imperium can easily be perceived as a flawed economic system that punishes ships built to higher performance levels than their competitors and is such seemingly anticompetitive. Whilst many people have theorized over the centuries that the economic plans as originally laid out at the founding of the Imperium were part of an fiscal plot to encourage the building of shorter range vessels, thus maximising more development and investment within local clusters of worlds and ensuring that the great majority of citizens stay close to home, nothing could be further from the truth. The Imperium needs its citizens to travel, invest in each others worlds and maintain lines of communication and promote the cultural homogeny essential to the Imperium's success. In order to do so it became a point of law that merchants could not charge any more than Cr1000, Cr8000 and Cr10,000 for low, mid and high passage respectively. Thus capping the cost of travelling and ensuring that distant destinations were within reach of the vast majority of those who were free and could afford to travel.
Whilst the advantages of such a system (for the freight owner) are obvious it flies in the face of so called imperial 'free trade' and market forces, thus over the long years of Imperial expansion and consolidation a number of traditions have evolved that assist both the ship owner and the freight ownerby meeting both of their needs within the market cycle such as the 'priority freight market' in which shippers pay more money to get their goods to their destination in a more timely manner and the Commercial Carriage Grant (CCG).
In order to compensate ship owners and reward them for their greater investment whilst off-setting the increased build cost and operating costs of their vessels a system of economic subsidies have evolved into being over time. This system rewards higher jump vessels by allowing them to claim a 'kick back' once they've reached their destination port. This is as follows- Revenues (freight) Jump 1 Cr0 2 Cr250 3 Cr500 4 Cr750
Thus a vessel transporting a single displacement ton of freight to a destination 1 parsec away whilst charging the average cost of Cr1,000 would follow the standard model for fees and charges and not qualify for a subsidy. Should the shipper wish to send the cargo a distance of 3 parsecs this would cost C3,000 assuming that 3 separate jumps were made to the destination, taking at minimum 3 weeks to get there, though more typically 6 weeks (assuming 2 weeks in each system).
Using the traditional model placing the cargo aboard a jump 3 vessel would save a considerable amount of time reducing trip times to 1-2 weeks and costing the same price Cr1,000, representing a significant advantage to the shipper whilst seriously penalising the ship owner who has invested more money than his competitors thus guaranteeing himself a poorer return.
Mercantile 'Kick Backs' & the SPAHQ Most people think that the cost of fuel and berthing at starports and space ports represents a charge to maintain the port authority and its personnel. This is not strictly true, all money raised is sent to the Subsector Port Authority Head Quarters (SPAHQ) usually but not always found at the subsector capital. The majority of the money is used to pay for the equipment and wages for all port personnel throughout the subsector. Thus personnel on quiet rarely visited worlds or installations do not have to depend on the infrequent number of visiting starships to pay for their wages or equipment, whilst the authority can also guarantee that each installation charges the same price for fuel and berthing thus trying to encourage an economic 'level playing field' between ports throughout the area. A further portion is used to support naval operations between the ports, whilst yet more money is dumped into the mercantile slush fund, used to cover the cost of subsidies in the region and the cost of CCG tickets.
Indeed the economic health of the Imperium is judged purely on the combined economic performance of the many port authority outlets throughout it's territories, which goes some of the way to explaining why trade is considered to be the life blood of the Imperium and why subsector dukes feel it is necessary to remain competitive with each other and do their best to manage their economic regions as best they can. After all individual worlds can experience booms, busts and long, deep recessions. Whilst this is of some concern, such events are considered to be a local concern to be looked after by the relevant noble appointed to that world who works in co-ordination with the local world government (if any). Only when there's a downturn in trade at that world does the subsector duke become interested – although less so, if another world within his/her/its ward begins picking up the slack, afterall patterns of trade can at times be fluidic.
Subsidies CCG tickets represent a kick back in which a high performance ship's master/bursor (i.e. Commanding a jump 2+ merchant) agrees to carry the shipper's cargo to their destination at the normal price (i.e. Cr1,000) per ton for freight, if the vessel jumps a greater distance than one parsec the vessel becomes eligible for a CCG ticket, which is redeemed at the Port Authority Office at the next destination once the cargo has been offloaded. CCG tickets when properly authorised pay out an additional Cr250 per parsec jumped (the port authority feels that it should have a significant discount) and only apply to freight shipped. Subsidized merchants are not eligible to join this scheme as they already have a huge economic advantage when compared to commercially owned ships, a condition of which is being tied to a cluster of worlds (usually 2 to 12). Also CCG's do not apply to the cost of life support requiring tickets (low, mid and high passage). The CCG system does not extend to jump 5 or higher vessels, as it would undercut the priority freight market. - A separate scheme exists to support Jump 5 & 6 vessels as they are considered to be militarily significant assets – this usually means that ultra high performance vessels wind up serving as Naval Auxilaries/Couriers in times of war or emergency.
Revenues (freight) Jump 1 Cr1000 2 Cr1250 3 Cr1500 4 Cr1750
LIFE SUPPORT Whilst the cost of life support is very cheap at Cr50, Cr750 to Cr1000 per week depending on cuisine and standard of accommodation and care individual passage prices are always charged at the maximum of Cr1000, Cr8,000 and Cr10,000 per jump for low, mid and high passage respectively (desperate ship captains may drop their rates, but cannot raise them) unless its an 'off the books activity' which exists in plenty in the Imperium. But for honest (read non blockade running,smuggling) merchant. The profit made from carrying passengers almost always subsidizes the cost of shipping freight. The CCG ticket system also encourages smaller vessels to cater toward the luxury end of the market, encouraging them to carry passengers as opposed to freight. Small vessels, such as the tramp merchants commonly found in port, often struggle to find freight and turn to market speculation instead. This is because most freight is shipped between worlds on contracted liners that move the goods at a flat price from and to a specific destination, usually supported by a mercantile subsidy. The excess or overspill freight is typically the freight moved from place to place by tramp merchants and thus cannot be relied upon as a regular source of income.
Example Design – The Rimward Venture. T20 Stats The 'Venture' is a standard IDP (Imperial Data Package) design, commonly encountered across the Imperial territories and designed to serve as a fleet auxiliary in times of need, supporting naval operations by transporting small troop contingents and their equipment between locations or supporting fleet logistics. The design is sold at the standard 20% discount. Built on an 800 ton close structured hull, she is partially streamlined can skim fuel and process it aboard, being a Jump 3 merchant she requires a crew of 13 to operate, has 8 dedicated high class luxury staterooms, 36 small cabins for crew use with the remainder (21) being sold at mid passage rates to any available passengers, she also carries 50 low berths. The hold is generous for a vessel of this type and can hold 279 tons of cargo. Unlike other larger vessels this ship does not come with a subcraft, as quite simply a subcraft is an expensive waste of space aboard a vessel designed to operate in civilised areas or where there is ample shuttle support. The space is put to work instead as cargo. She mounts two hard points containing 3 pulselasers each, which fire as a single battery (factor 4).
Total Costs 227.704 (including quantity discount)
Crew Requirements:11 1 x gunner Cr1000 1 x pilot Cr6000 1 x astrogator Cr5000 6 x Engineer Cr19,000 1 x Medic Cr2000 1 x Steward Cr3000
System Comparisons Below are two examples the one on the left represents the standard Imperial fiscal model of trade, the one on the right represents the 'contemporary' model, both assume the vessel is making two consecutive jumps of 3 parsecs each (maximum range).
Traditional Model Contemporary Model Revenues =(1,154,000) =(1,433,000) High Passage x 8 = Cr 160,000 Cr 160,000 Mid Passage x 21 = Cr 336,000 Cr 336,000 Low Passage x 50 = Cr 100,000 Cr 100,000 Freight = Cr 558,000 Cr 837,000
Costs = Cr (1,186,766) =(1, 186,766) Crew = Cr 40,000 (approx) =Cr 40,000 Mortgage = Cr 948,766 =Cr 948,766 Fuel = Cr 106,000 =Cr 106,000 Unrefined – includes shuttling fee Berthing = Cr 1,000 =Cr 1,000 Life Support = Cr 91,000 =Cr 91,000 Total Loss of Cr30.966 Profit Cr246.234
Summary Using the Standard trade model – assuming that the venture was purchased new by a private owner not entitled to any imperial subsidies it is easy to see that even with the tight configuration as listed below – she is still not profitable, with incoming revenues of Cr 1,154,000 against outgoings of Cr 1,186,766. This assumes that the hold is full of freight, speculation obviously makes a great difference if it can be done properly, but bankers never invest money in anything less than guaranteed returns hence freight is always factored in to the equation. When compared to the contemporary model it is obvious which one is the best for this class of ship. Indeed this system actually encourages the building and development of higher performance ships thus extending the economic reach of the Imperium, whilst encouraging vessels to always jump to their maximum.
As previously mentioned the scheme does not extend to Mercantile Jump 5 or higher performance vessels, this is deliberate. Most merchant vessels do not need the extended range that comes with Jump 5 and where there are a number of worlds are separated by such great distances, their needs are normally fulfilled by purpose built merchants or the chartered ships of a bulk shipping company, all of which are usually eligible for the more usual imperial subsidy that has the unfortunate side effect of tying down those vessels to a specific route or cluster of worlds (not to mention the reserve subsidies available for this class of vessels). The advantage of this new system is that it allows vessels to wander freely whilst compensating the ship's owners partway for the expense of purchasing a high performance vessel, whilst also ensuring that the priority freight market is unaffected. This serves to stimulate trade in less well developed areas.
Eligibility In order to be able to take advantage of this scheme – all vessels must be registered out of a designated Imperial member world – vessel's from other states are not eligible for the subsidy unless they change their ship's registration, making them Imperial vessels. This rarely happens as the ship's owner must then become an Imperial Citizen by registering or applying for citizenship at the same port/world where they register the ship. Thus vessels belonging to corporations from border states and beyond cannot benefit from this scheme unless the company's administrative centre is moved to Imperial Space. This gives licensed Imperial vessels a considerable advantages in frontier sectors, and serves to maintain the high standards that the citizenry has come to associate with Imperial Shipping.
Reserve Subsidy High Jump Vessels capable of reaching 5 or 6 parsecs in a single jump are tactically valuable to the Imperium and thus are eligible for a significant subsidy. The level of the subsidy varies depending upon the amount of time that the ship's master is willing to turn his/her or its vessel over into Imperial Service.
To qualify the vessel must be commanded by a Former Imperial Naval Officer (minium retired rank of Lieutenant), who is capable of working with an Imperial Fleet Liason Officer (who serves as master aboard when the ship is called up for duty). Subsidies are as follows and vary depending upon the amount of time spent in the service of the Imperial Navy). Thus a vessel with a subsidy of 25% (being the amout of its mortgage paid by the Imperial Navy) must be available for duty 8 weeks of the Imperial Year. A vessel could have its entire mortgage annulled by volunteering for 26 weeks (6 months) duty per year.
25% 8 weeks per Annum 50% 12 Weeks Per Annum 75% 18 Weeks Per Annum 100% 26 Weeks Per Annum
Also all crew wages/salaries are paid in full by the navy when the ship is operating under their duty, along with a 10% bonus for routine duties or a 20% bonus for operating under harzardous conditions. All repairs, maintainance, (including annual maintainance), fuel & Berthing (at Imperial ports) and associated operating costs are covered in the agreement and are paid for throughout the year as the Navy likes vessels under its control to be in tip top condition. Thus captains/owners of these vessels need never worry about annual or routine maintainance (this must be done at a naval facility).
When a tour of duty finishes the ship's master must specify which naval base the vessel will be reporting to for its next tour of duty which could be anything from 1 year away to 6 months depending on the option selected. In the meantime the ships owner/captain may take the vessel wherever he/she/it pleases and may enjoy a range of significant benefits such as afforded by a reserve commision in the Imperial Navy. These Benefits are respectively:
In addition to the time spent in service to the navy, these high jump vessels are expected to report to their nearest naval base in the event of any disaster or outbreak of hostility or tensions in the region. Between stints they are free to wander as they please and trade as they like.
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