Maneuvering a large vessel in close quarters is a highly specialized operation, especially when you’re talking about ship-to-ship transfers. Although much the world’s cargoes are transferred at land-based terminals, oil and gas products are often transferred from one ship to another in the open sea. During the process, the vessel receiving the product will moor to the mother ship and the mother ship will then be lightered of its cargo.
The video below shows the interaction between two vessels engaged in an oil ship-to-ship operation. Although the video is sped up, the maneuver requires much prudence and experience on the part of the mooring master performing the operation.