EBRD helps build new floating dock in Turkey's Marmara Sea

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has said it is boosting the Turkish shipping industry with a $19.5 million loan to a local ship maintenance yard, Tersan Tersanecilik Sanayi ve Ticaret A.Ş in a statement. 

Tersan, whose line of business includes repairing ships and barges, currently owns two floating docks, according to the statement, which was released on July 10. 

It will use the EBRD financing to build a new dock in Yalova, a city on the eastern coast of the Marmara Sea. The new dock will replace a maintenance facility leased by the company until December 2016, according to the statement. 

The dock will be able to cater for larger, Panamax-size vessels, which are able to fit through the old Panama Canal (the new canal is wider), and will be the third such dock in terms of technical and installed capacity in Turkey's Yalova cluster.

"It will help the firm grow into a key player for maintaining ships, retrofitting them to run on liquefied natural gas as fuel and installing ballast water treatment technology. The investment is also expected to significantly increase the company's repair activities, helping to meet the growing demand for such services in the region," the EBRD said. 

The vessel maintenance sector in Turkey is growing into a major industry as its shipbuilding and repair facilities become increasingly important in the region. Both local and European clients are looking for cost-effective ways to maintain ships, and Turkey offers some of the most competitive prices in terms of steel and labor.