The EU Green Deal has accelerated orders for electric and hybrid ships to Turkish shipyards. The shipyards, which are preparing to set a new record in exports at the end of the year, aim to make the real leap in 2023. The number of environmentally friendly ships to be delivered by the end of 2023 in the order books of the shipyards has reached 30.
Turning the global economic crisis in 2008 into an opportunity, Turkish shipyards, which turned to special purpose shipbuilding, continue their rapid rise in this field. Domestic shipyards, which have signed many projects that have made a sound in the world, such as the first floating energy ship, the first remote-controlled ship, and electric tug, are preparing to set a new record in exports this year. Shipyards, whose orders have accelerated especially with environmental projects from the EU, aim to make the real leap in 2023. Ship, Yacht, and Services Exporters’ Association President Cem Seven said that there are 30 environmentally friendly ships in the shipyards’ order book to be delivered in 2022 and 2023, according to the news of Aysel Yücel from Dünya Newspaper.
Ship, Yacht, and Services Exporters’ Association Chairman Cem Seven made the following statement regarding the new orders, “There is an increase in the orders for environmentally-friendly ships coming to Turkey within the framework of the EU Green Agreement. There are more than 20 ‘green’ ships scheduled to be delivered this year. Our shipyards are building electric, hybrid cruise ships that can travel to the Arctic zones. We also have fishing boats and ferry projects with electric or hybrid engines.” There are 30 environmentally friendly ships planned to be delivered between 2022-2023 in the order book of the shipyards. These ships consist of 9 ferries, 8 fishing vessels, 5 tugs, 4 live fish carriers, 3 cruise ships, and 1 Ropax.
The sector has an export target of at least 1.7 billion dollars this year. This means a new record. Seven said, “The information we received from the field shows that we can easily achieve this goal. Some of the orders have been delayed until 2023. It will be a good year.” Shipbuilders achieved the highest export in the history of the union by exporting ships and yachts worth 1 billion 626 million dollars with an increase of 18 percent last year. Seven add that they aim to reach 2 billion dollars in exports in 2023.
Exports increased by 69% in January
Shipyards started this year fast as well. It increased its exports by 69 percent to 71 million dollars, compared to January of 2021. Cem Seven said, “When we look at the breakdown of the items that make up our exports in January, our tug exports to South American countries and Canada draw the attention. We export our tugs to Norway, the most important market of our industry. Exports in the fishing vessel product group, where our industry is one of the most important brands in the World.
84 shipyards, 50 thousand jobs
There are 84 active shipyards in Turkey. The shipyards have a new build capacity of 4.65 million DWT. It also has a repair-maintenance capacity of 25 million DWT. The direct employment provided by the sector is 50 thousand. Turkey is the top 10 countries in the world in the export of custom-built ships and mega yachts for special purposes. Shipyards, which have been leaders in fishing vessel construction for the last two years, are the top 5 exporting countries in tug exports and the top 10 exporting countries in ferry exports. The Turkish shipbuilding industry ranks third in terms of total length in mega yachts.
“SCT should not be charged on the imported equipment of the exported ship”
The Turkish shipbuilding industry, which has strengthened its presence in global markets, has important expectations to accelerate growth. Cem Seven stated that there is a SCT tax on most of the equipment imported from abroad on ships and yachts exported as a sector and this situation puts the sector under strain. Stated that “Due to the nature of the business, we think that imported equipment for a ship to be exported should be exempt from SCT. Because we can’t get this SCT tax we paid back like VAT. We conveyed our requests to the relevant ministries of the sea, such as GİSBİR, DTO, and GYHİB. We hope that the problem will be resolved this year.” The SCT varies between 5 percent and 20 percent, depending on the imported ship equipment. Seven said, “SCT exemption can be obtained with an inward processing document/permit. However, inward processing procedures are not very suitable for ship and yacht construction.”
Large areas are needed for yacht construction
Turkey makes tailor-made production in yacht construction, as in special-purpose shipbuilding. Cem Seven stated that there is a yacht export cake of 17 billion dollars in the world, “Turkey received a share of 185 million dollars from this cake in 2021. The biggest countries in this area are Germany, Italy and the Netherlands. Although the Netherlands is a small country, it exports yachts worth 3 billion dollars. We can also increase our share in this field. However, this requires large areas reserved only for yacht building. In addition, it is necessary to strengthen the workforce with vocational high schools”.
11th tug order from SMS Towage to Sanmar
Sanmar Shipping signed the first agreement of 2022 with SMS Towage. As part of the agreement, the Robert Allan design RAmparts 2200 series Sırapınar XV tug, currently operating in Sanmar’s fleet, was sold to SMS Towage. Designed for maximum efficiency in the handling of bulky vessels, Sırapınar XV with a pulling force of 54 tons will join Pullman and Lloydsman, the construction of which was completed in 2017 and 2019, and will become the 11th Sanmar tug in SMS Towage’s fleet. Sırapınar XV has two Caterpillar 3512C main engines, each producing 1,500kW of power, and is 22.4 meters long and 10.84 meters wide. It is equipped with Schottel 360 FP Z-Drive propellers and can reach a cruise speed of 11 knots. Sanmar Maritime Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors Ali Gurun said that “We made a quick start to 2022 by signing this agreement with our friends at SMS Towage. It is always a pleasure for our current customers to choose us again. Our RAmparts 2200 series is particularly popular thanks to its high standards in machine automation. At the same time, it is highly preferred due to its stability performance, maneuverability, and maritime capability. According to the agreement, Sanmar is scheduled to depart from the shipyard for delivery by its crew in October 2022.
First delivery of the year at Tersan to Spain
Tersan made the first delivery of the year to the Spanish company Stromness Bay Limited. The Fishing Rod Factory Fishing Vessel Polar Bay has a total length of 60.5 meters and a width of 13.0 meters and is equipped with a 1920 kW Yanmar main engine. 60 meters long Fishing Type Factory Fishing vessel which is designed by Marinteknik, will operate under the St. Helena flag. Polar Bay was built to be able to fish from a pond called a ‘moonpool’, in bad weather conditions.
A first from Beşiktaş Shipyard
Beşiktaş Shipyard broke new ground in its facilities located in the Altınova district of Yalova, continuing its growth and investments in maintenance-repair activities. For the first time, Beşiktaş Shipyard provided maintenance and repair services to an LNG ship. Beşiktaş Shipyard has been carrying out infrastructure work for maintenance and repair of LNG ships for a while. The shipyard, which has completed all documents and training for LNG ship repairs, has started the renovation process of the LNG ship in Turkey.
