It started seven years ago in Dubai as a small agency business.
Now DTA Ship Agency has since branched out into maritime logistics, technical services, information technology and offshore, while at the same time is expanding its geographical footprint.
The availability of affordably-priced offshore tonnage has played a significant role in this quest for growth. The company operates a fleet of 14 utility, crew and supply vessels, along with an anchor handling tug. It is looking to add more.
The outfit is in the process of rebranding itself as DTA Maritime, a name that chief executive Flemming Jensen says better reflects its service offerings.
“Everyone does marine and logistics services. We added technical and innovation services so that we can stand out,” says Jensen, who joined the company in 2017 from Inchcape Shipping Services.
Jensen says he was brought onboard to spearhead group diversity and globalisation.
“We are doing this in three phases — asset renewal, diversification and geographic expansion,” he says.
The asset-renewal phase began in earnest in January this year, when the company bought six 238-gt fast crew and supply boats from the liquidators of failed Malaysian offshore player Borcos Shipping.
According to Jensen, the ships were in rough shape after two years in lay-up.
'Back up to standard'
“We did our own dry-dockings of the ships, and do our own technical management," he says. "We brought them back up to standard. The whole idea is that in a depressed market, where assets can be bought at a low cost, it is a good time to build your strengths and capabilities.”
The addition of the vessels has allowed DTA Ship Agency to move forward with expanding the scope of its technical services, which now includes offshore repair and underwater maintenance services.
The vessels are also used in logistics roles, ferrying crews, supplies and equipment out to vessels, for which DTA Ship Agency acts as agents. The anchor handler is used primarily for towing jobs.
The vessels have also been working in the Middle East offshore sector, mostly to oil majors in the area.
Jensen estimates that offshore work now accounts for about 40% of the fleet’s business, and the volume of work is growing.
DTA Ship Agency’s traditional sphere of operation has been the United Arab Emirates, operating out of Dubai, Fujairah and Abu Dhabi. More recently, it has opened offices in Oman and Kuwait.
Outside of the Middle East, it has just opened an office in Singapore, with ship-finance veteran Lily Kontakou appointed as the company’s representative in the Lion City.
The Singapore branch will begin with commercial operations, before basing a supply boat in the city state to do husbandry, logistics and eventually technical services. Ultimately, the company wants to make Singapore its Asian headquarters.
“We hope that our husbandry services will be our anchor point, but move into a technical focus," Kontakou says. "We have to be able to do ship agency work but don’t expect that it will be more than 10% of the business.”
DTA Ship Agency is in the process of opening an office in Greece, and Jensen hints that it is aiming to add four to five more locations in 2019, which could potentially require it to add another five or so ships to its fleet.
“We are still expanding on the asset side,” he says.
Jensen does not rule out further growth of the company’s involvement in the offshore sector. Any vessels acquired specifically for offshore work would depend on the type and nature of contract received.
