We continue to grow our fleet

YMN Tanker is managed by Yaman Şen, a young, dynamic and innovative businessman. Şen, one of the new generation managers of Turkish maritime, is one of our sailors who see the future today and prepare plans. His plans include the maritime sector, which changes globally, the possible course of socio-political developments, and the rise of issues such as technology and the environment. We talked with Şen, whose name we believe we will hear a lot in the future of our industry, about the establishment of YMN Tanker and its goals for the future. 

Orders canceled in 2008 crisis

Providing information about YMN Tanker's entry into the sector, Yaman Şen said, “We actually built the ships we have now for our customer in our own shipyard at that time. Orders were canceled when the 2008 crisis broke out. We decided to operate the remaining ships ourselves. We started to operate our first ship in 2009. In 2012, we started our technical operation within our own company by establishing YMN Tanker. We have completed and added six newly built ships to our fleet in the last three years. We are taking firm steps forward with our dynamic and experienced staff.”

We continue to grow our fleet 

Mentioning the fleet structure of YMN, Şen said, “We have ten 8,400, two 26 thousand and one 9,400 stainless steel ships in our fleet. We recently received an ecoship design. If we consider the operating time of a conventionally newly produced ship to be 15-20 years, it does not seem possible to complete its life due to new regulations with traditional machines. That's why we are looking at ship alternatives that are more ecological and can use different types of fuel.”

The average age of our ships is 5

Şen said that there is a very wide scale of ships in the chemical tanker transportation market, generally between 2005 and 2010, and said, “People who charter these ships do not prefer ships over 15 years of age. Our fleet age is on average 5. Compared to the world fleet, we have a very young fleet. The average age of ships in Europe is 12-13. Customers give okay to every ship when the market is good, but they especially prefer the new ship when the market is bad. Ships of our tonnage do not make long voyages like big tankers. Since our ships visit many ports, the ship wears out more quickly. Materials, tanks, equipment are used more often. Crude oil tankers sail during a month and a half, have 6 tanks and only transport crude oil while we carry all kinds of petroleum and petrochemical derivatives.”

Freight and risk are high in the Black Sea

Şen gave information about the regions he worked and said, “The route of our 26 thousand ships is clear: Sunflower oil comes from the Black Sea to a large extent and goes to the Far East. We also load palm oil from the Far East and bring it to Europe. After this route, we usually take the idle ship to the Black Sea because there is not much cargo at 26 thousand tons in Europe. Since there is a problem on the Black Sea side now, the freights have increased, but the risk has also increased. They called it a grain corridor, but the port was bombed. The freight rates there are really high”.

The direction of world trade is changing

"Our ships operate within Europe; On the sides of Spain, France, Morocco, Algeria. We also have ships operating on time charter in the north. It's a slightly more closed area. It's a little harder to get in. The mood has also changed after recent events. For example, sunflower oil started to come out a lot from upriver Argentina. Now we feel that the direction of the whole world trade is slowly changing. Sanctions against Venezuela and Iran could be lifted if the war continues" he said.

We currently do not have a new build plan.

Stating that they received their last ship two months ago, Şen said, “We do not have a new shipbuilding plan at the moment. Sheet metal prices have also increased significantly. We don't know how to do it when investing. I have attended many conferences. The questions asked are: “Is the fuel of the future methanol, LNG etc.” Everyone is asking what will happen. They cannot say that this or that will happen, because they do not know. So building new doesn't make sense to me, especially with these increasing numbers. We prefer to buy second-hand ships”

Once the war is over, the situation will change.

Saying that it is difficult to predict the course of the markets in the upcoming period, Şen said, “This is a purely political situation. Freight increased significantly in Ukraine and Russia flights. Now that Russia and Ukraine are at war, the rates there are very high. But if Ukraine and Russia make peace, this time the rates will remain high in order to go to the accumulated cargo there. That's my guess. It will take at least a couple more years. Changing this depends entirely on the war. If the war is over, I think it will continue like this, but for a short time. Because ships will go and load the accumulated goods there somehow. There is a gap in Europe right now. Likewise, the reason for the gap in Europe is that everyone takes the ships to the Black Sea. Europe is empty. We can say that the ships going to the Black Sea and the ships in Europe started to work at almost close rates. That's why there is a strange situation.”

I want to grow the fleet

Explaining his plans for the coming period, Şen said, “I want to increase both the number of ships and the tonnage. Because, in my personal opinion, when alternative fuels are used in large ships in the future, all of the CPP products they carry will be fuel and their volume will increase. Now these are transported in lower tonnage. I want to buy ships of that tonnage and be more comfortable operationally. Because our ships are small. It enters the port 1-2 times a week at the latest, and each port operation is a separate risk. We know what will happen to us if a ship breaks down in Europe. Large tonnage ships are more comfortable operationally. You moor the ship, it takes 1 month and 40 days. We moor the ship, three days later we start the next voyage. It is also a tiring job. Of course, it keeps us fit… We have a route to tend towards large tonnages. I also have a dream, LNG-fueled VLCC.”

Need to take a wide view

Expressing his views on Turkey's chemical tanker fleet, Şen said, “First of all, we should not approach with a narrow perspective. In other words, look to your right, look to your left, life does not pass like that, you have to look ahead. What is he doing? How much does this cost? How much does that give?... We have to get over them. We must plan how we can fight the Far East and the Europeans. When the market is bad, we need to be able to join forces and 'pool' like the Europeans do.”

Most of the companies we work with are foreign companies

Saying that they are in foreign markets, Şen said, “The number of our customers with Turkey connections is very limited. Most of the clients we work with are foreigners. In fact, we are talking about a large but not very large industry. Everyone's tonnage is different. We are the company that has the most ships in its fleet at 8400 DWT. Our fleet is young, and as a company that has been in the industry for more than 10 years, our infrastructure is now settled. For example, we made 5 of the last 5 loads of a very large 'key account' on the same route. Because in general terms, we definitely have a ship in that position. We made long-term lease agreements with Cepsa and Repsol. The companies we work with are important companies around the world, and these companies start to work after seriously auditing their business partners. Consumption is increasing every year. For this reason, the demands are also increasing. Moreover, all these are in direct proportion with supply and demand. My advice to Turkish shipowners would be to follow the new regulations and technologies and evaluate their investments accordingly in order to exist in this market for a long time.”

TURK MARINEWS