10 BULKDISTRIBUTOR March / April 2018 Equipment Leasing
10 BULKDISTRIBUTOR March / April 2018 Equipment Leasing
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Three years on from the acquisition of Cronos Container by Bohai Leasing , the parent company of rival container lessor Seaco , the merger of the two has established Seaco as the largest of its kind in the world , measured by container equivalent units ( CEUs ). At the time of the merger , the combined fleet numbered approximately 2.3 million TEU , and 3.6 million CEU . The vast majority , of course , comprise standard dry boxes and reefers . But the merger also propelled Seaco ’ s tank container business into second place after Exsif Worldwide . Bulk Distributor caught up with John Bannister , vice president for Seaco ’ s reefers and tanks global business , to discuss how the merger has gone so far and what lies ahead not just for his firm but the tank leasing industry as a whole . “ Through combining Seaco and Cronos we have seen our tank fleet grow to over 43,000 units which makes us the second largest tank leasing company ,” he notes . “ In combination with this we have also expanded the range of tank unit types we can offer , including powder tanks and gas tanks . In addition , it has also allowed us to expand our depot network and the scope of technical support we can provide to our customers .”
The merger of Seaco and Cronos made the combined firm the second biggest tank lessor overnight
More consolidation ?
The tank leasing sector is no stranger to mergers , but there have been few involving the scale of Seaco and Cronos . At the same time , with relatively few barriers to entry and seemingly easy access to both seed and growth capital , the past few years have seen the establishment of new market players in tank leasing . Witness CS Leasing , first set up in 2015 by Dutch container lessor CARU Containers , which previously had not toyed with ISO tanks . Since then a significant funding injection by Maas Capital has enabled the firm to build up a sizeable tank fleet in a short space of time . GEM Container , founded in 2012 by Heidi Sommerville , was recently acquired by venture capital outfit Rampart Capital , while Albatross Leasing , a subsidiary of China ’ s Sinochem International Logistics , is steadily building up its tank range . So how does John Bannister view the outlook for possible further
John Bannister , vice president for Seaco ’ s reefers and tanks global business
consolidation in the tank leasing sector ? “ The tank leasing sector has three large players occupying circa 68 percent of the market ,” he comments . “ The balance of 32 percent is quite fragmented so there are probably opportunities for some consolidation .” Unlike some of its peers , Seaco has not yet invested in composite or LNG tanks . But Bannister hints that could change , although a final decision will only be made if and when the firm feels the time is right and it can get value from broadening its range . “ We have not , as yet , invested in composite or LNG tanks , but this is certainly on our radar and we are looking seriously at the opportunities these and other tank types may present to us ,” he says . “ From our perspective , there has been constant demand for the standard T11 unit , but there has also been an increasing interest in gas and special tanks ,” he adds .
Tanking the dragon
China has long been viewed as the big untapped market for greater use of tank containers . This is particularly appealing to the government in Beijing as it attempts to encourage greater use of intermodal rail transport to combat congestion on the country ’ s roads and frighteningly poor air quality in many of its cities . Being now under Chinese ownership , BD asked John Bannister how far Seaco can realistically go in terms of meeting demand in the economic giant . “ We are certainly looking at the China market with great interest , not only because of its growth potential , but also because of the possible synergies our Chinese ownership may present ,” he comments . But that said Seaco also views a number of other markets that are showing good potential for growth in bulk liquid movements . Although not to be drawn on particular markets , he notes that the rest of Asia and the Middle East have probably shown a bit more promise in terms of recent demand . The tank leasing sector could certainly do with the fillip of global growth to get the business back on an even keel . As Bannister points out three to four years ago , there was significant investment in tank containers which was far in excess of the growth of the actual tank market . “ Over the past two years the market has continued to grow and has absorbed most of the over-investment ,” he states . “ The downside has been the fall in tank prices and lease rates . In 2018 , we may see prices rise , as a result of increased material costs which hopefully will have a knock-on effect on lease rates .”
Your tank container experts
TWS has more than 25 years of experience in renting out standard and special tank containers for liquid products to the chemical and food industries . TWS also provides various sizes of spill troughs . Customers rely on the outstanding quality of its fleet and value its flexibility in terms of volume and technical features . For more information : E-mail : tws @ tws-gmbh . de and web : www . tws-gmbh . de
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Bulk Distributor talks to Inge Karlberg of Red Dot Services about his new tank container leasing venture , MIMU Tank Leasing
MIMU Tank Leasing started life as a department within
Red Dot Services , but in 2016 Karlberg and business partner Steve Govers decided to separate the two activities . While Red Dot Services continues to provide tank container logistics support to the chemical industry , MIMU Tank Leasing caters solely for the smaller tank leasing market . Although separate entities , there is still much synergy between the two companies ; they have the same shareholders , are located at the same address in Antwerp and share many of the same customers . Despite the fact that there is already a considerable stockpile of empty tank containers in storage depots around the world , Karlberg explains why , as a company , the decision was made to branch out in to the tank leasing market .
What ’ s in a name ?
Size matters
“ There is currently a global surplus of tank containers in storage , but they can generally be slotted into one major category . Referred to by many as ‘ the work horse of the tank industry ’ this category comprises 23,000 , 24,000 and 25,000 litre units ,” he told Bulk Distributor . “ Tanks with smaller volumes , of 21,000 litres and less , and those with bigger volumes , says 26,000 litres upwards , are generally considered to be more desirable units . For this reason , we decided to concentrate our leasing activities specifically on the smaller end of the market .” A few years ago the price of stainless steel fell considerably , resulting in a significant increase in speculative new tank orders from major leasing companies . However , despite this , MIMU Tank Leasing is not looking to compete in this segment of the market and has no desire to become a large tank leasing company . Karlberg went on : “ We have a small fleet of tanks , all of which have top discharge capabilities . Our customers rely on our expertise and have the utmost confidence that we can provide them with the most suitable tank for their specific products and geographic trading areas . Many of our tanks are also internally lined to facilitate the transportation of corrosive liquids such as chlorides . Our top valves are also lined with Teflon , eliminating any contact between the cargo and the steel of the tank container itself .” Based in Antwerp , with an office in Stockholm and a network of agents across the globe , including Mumbai and Houston , the company operates predominantly in the emerging markets of India , Eastern Europe and South East Asia . As well as its standard leasing activities , MIMU offers operational lease agreements and provides customers with fully integrated logistics packages on request .
A family affair
Family is at the very heart of the business and this is reflected in the unusual choice of name . “ The name MIMU Tank Leasing is not as random as it may seem and certainly wasn ’ t plucked out of thin air ,” laughed Karlberg . “ It was created using my wife , Martine Inghels-Moerkens ’ initials . Family is important to us and we have decided to demonstrate this by placing our grandchildren ’ s names on all of our new tanks and are keen for this lovely tradition to continue .” Looking ahead , Karlberg has specific plans for the future : “ We would like to continue to specialise in small and lined tank containers , with careful growth .” www . mimu-tankleasing . com