Seapower: Time for Efficiency and Savings

Seapower's Chairman, M. Serdar Boran, who graduated from the Electrical and Electronics Engineering Department of Istanbul Aydın University, comes from a family of engineers. His father and brother are also electrical engineers. While working on city grids, Boran shifted his focus to power electronics. He stated that they have been working for a long time to produce and develop products in power electronics that were either unavailable or had few alternatives in Turkey. Boran explained, "In shipyards, many foreign brand devices are used. The service-related problems with these devices, the inability to find spare parts, or delays in supply led us to develop marine power electronics."

M. Serdar Boran further stated, "We produce five types of converters to meet various needs, including converters to supply power to ships arriving at shipyards, as well as 400 Hz converters designed specifically to feed critical fire control systems of military ships. These converters provide reliable and uninterrupted energy solutions by meeting the energy needs of equipment used in military applications that require high precision. Additionally, the grid standard in European and Turkish ports is 50Hz, while shipboard systems operate at 60Hz. This difference makes it impossible for ships to directly connect to port infrastructure. Besides the frequency mismatch, the voltage requirements of ships may differ from the port's specifications. Seapower converters optimize both frequency and voltage, ensuring reliable and efficient energy transfer and providing ships with the electrical energy they need with the most effective systems. In compliance with current regulations and the Greenport Rules, we ensure that ships docked at ports receive power in accordance with IEC standards with 6.6 kV or 11 kV, 60 Hz energy systems. Moreover, we produce Marine UPS systems that are resistant to harsh sea conditions, humidity, corrosion, shocks, and suitable for inductive loads."

Our Products Are Environmentally Friendly

Seapower’s Chairman, M. Serdar Boran, emphasized the significant environmental and economic importance of their zero-emission goals. Highlighting Seapower’s leadership role in this area, Boran made the following remarks:

"Zero emissions are on the global agenda. Our goal is to be at the center of efforts to reduce emissions in our sector. In the past, when ships docked at shipyards, their auxiliary engines were shut down, and fossil fuels were burned through rental generators to meet their energy needs. When ships required high amounts of energy, ship engines had to be operated, which resulted in significant carbon emissions. For instance, black clouds were visible in the Yalova and Tuzla regions due to these emissions. But today, when we look around, we see a clean airspace."

Seapower’s environmentally friendly products minimize fossil fuel consumption and reduce carbon emissions when ships dock at port. The company’s innovative solutions not only protect the environment but also represent Turkey in the best possible way by establishing systems in the world’s leading ports.

Reducing Emissions, Saving Fuel

Speaking about eco-friendly technologies and energy solutions that provide economic benefits, Boran stated that shore power systems are a profit opportunity for shipyards and ports. He said: “They sell the electricity they receive from the shore at a certain rate. This generates income for our shipyards and ports. At the same time, they achieve zero emissions without using fossil fuels and without polluting the air. We ensure that shaft alternators on ships are available at varying main engine RPMs. By adding the converter system we developed between the ship’s main panel and the shaft alternator, we convert the low voltage frequency generated by the alternator at variable RPM (in combined mode) into the stable energy required by the ship, making it constant. This allows the ship’s generators to remain off, reducing MDO to zero. We save fuel, extend the lifespan of the ship’s machinery, and ensure savings based on the power of the ship’s engine, generator, and shaft alternator. Additionally, by using our environmentally friendly systems with low carbon emissions, we can save on the high tax costs of carbon taxes, which will come into effect in 2025.”

Energy Sales at Ports Should Be Allowed

Boran described their work on ports: “We successfully completed 17.5 MVA and 6 MVA capacity port projects in Foça, Aksaz, Nato, and Malta. Europe is quickly transitioning to the GreenPort (Green Port) concept. Turkey must adapt to this transformation as well. Our ports need to be better prepared to supply shore power to ships sailing in international waters. However, we face infrastructural deficiencies. Ports need to be allowed to sell energy; in European ports, this has already been established, while in our country, invoices can be issued under service charges, but energy sales are not allowed. When Seapower first entered the industry, the total converter power in shipyards was 10,000 kVA; today, it has reached 200,000 kVA. This is enough to power a small city.”

Expanding Our Sales and Service Network Globally

Boran emphasized the need to prepare for the zero-emission goal of 2053, stating: “There is an effort for zero emissions not only in the seas and our shores but also in many other sectors. With our environmentally friendly products, we are providing zero emissions to ships, shipyards, and ports in our sector.”

He continued: “Today, respected shipyards that export from our country to many parts of the world prefer Seapower for their ships. In this regard, many countries, especially in Scandinavia, use the products we produce through our shipyards. We opened our office in Spain, established Seapower UK in the UK, and have a service point in Florida, USA. We’ve signed agreements for sales and service points in Greece and Genoa, Italy. In Dubai, we have partnered with a large group serving many countries. Thus, we have established our sales and service network in many parts of the world.”

Our Goal is to Establish a Seapower Presence in Every Country

"Our focus is on Asia, but our primary target is European countries," said Boran, adding, "We are in the process of negotiating with the Netherlands, one of the leading countries in the maritime sector. Germany is also one of our targets. Our goal is to establish Seapower sales and service networks at every location worldwide." Boran also pointed out the importance of renewable and sustainable energy sources globally, stating: "To use alternative energy sources more efficiently, we are installing energy storage systems for wind and solar power plants (RES and GES). These products are manufactured locally with 100% Turkish capital."

Boran continued, “In the past, our devices were monoblock, larger in size and occupying more space, with an efficiency rate of around 90%. As a result of our technological advancements, we have now transformed these devices into modular, smaller units, achieving an efficiency of 95-96%. Our new modular devices are used in ships, shipyards, ports, and industrial facilities. We have also certified our devices with reputable maritime standards such as Lloyd's Register, Bureau Veritas, DNV, and Türk Loydu.”

The Disruption of a 50-Year System

Boran shared his experience of entering the market, stating: "When we produced the products, we thought everyone would be waiting for us with open arms, but unfortunately, the feedback has been slow. Patience is key in this process. We are already facing significant challenges abroad. Currently, we are an approved supplier for the Ministry of National Defense, but it took us about 5-6 years to get here. Until recently, foreign-brand devices were preferred at the ports under the Ministry of National Defense. These old devices were dynamic converters operating at 80% efficiency, resulting in high energy loss. This 50-year-old system has been disrupted, and for the first time, we installed our indigenous Seapower system with 6000 kVA capacity at Foça Port, which has been running smoothly for the past 2.5 years."

Boran emphasized the efforts of Turkish shipyards to win international projects for the country, although many of the systems used in these projects are foreign brands. "At least in the field of power electronics, we are working to break this dependency. We can now provide our products for these projects, but despite the support from shipyards for domestic and local products, foreign project owners tend to prefer foreign brands," he said.

Our Goal is to Increase Operations in Countries Where Our Sales Are Low

Boran highlighted that 2024 was one of the weakest commercial years for Seapower and acknowledged that it was a difficult year for both the country and the sector. "However, we hope that with the decrease in interest rates in 2025, our business will improve," Boran said. He added: "While 2024 was a quiet year, we focused on improving the technology of our own products and used our time efficiently. In 2025, we will focus on attending globally recognized trade fairs, such as SMM, Europort, Posidonia, and METS, which cater to the yacht industry. Our goal in 2025 is to increase our activities in countries where we are not yet present or where our sales are low, and to make a move towards the U.S. market. The U.S. is a huge market, and we plan to participate in a trade fair there as well. We have business with every country that has a coastline, so our goal is to be present in all these countries. Alongside attending trade fairs, we will also focus on one-on-one meetings to promote our products and Turkish goods to the world. Even though our country is going through tough times, we must all aim to do our jobs well and open up to the world by producing quality products in our region."