Abu Dhabi National Tanker Company has come a long way since its establishment in 1975 with the acquisition of two very large crude carriers (VLCCs).

The company now has a fleet of eight vessels and has announced it will sell ageing carriers and acquire new ones.
Under its modernisation programme, the fleet size and type will vary between 45,000 dwt and Aframax and from clean product vessels to crude tankers. “The company will replace its aging tanker fleet by newer ships. The process has already started and we have sold three old vessels,” Adnatco chairman Sultan A Al Mehairi said recently. He also said the company was in the process of selecting a PMC for ship acquisition and the expectations were that the ship acquisition and sale of older vessels would run parallel.
The company currently does not own dry bulk carriers but may acquire them, he added.  Currently two of its carriers, namely Al Dhabiyyah and Arzanah, are chartered to Adnoc for transporting products between Ras Al Nakhl and Ruwais; two are on time charter to Emarat, namely Diyyinah and Baynunah, while one vessel, Al Dhibyaniyyah, is chartered to Enoc and operates between Iran and Jebel Ali and is put on the spot market whenever she is free. One other ship, Janana, is chartered to NGSCO for loading molten sulphur at Das Island for discharge in Ruwais and another vessel Al Dhafrah, chartered to Crowley, has been earmarked for port utilisation with Borouge. The carrier Al Ruwais has been chartered to Borouge for loading at Ruwais and discharging cargo at Abu Dhabi and or Jebel Ali.
Total cargo that Adnatco’s owned and leased vessels discharged in 2004 was 10.7 million tonnes against 9.6 million tonnes in the previous year. The owned ships accounted for 9.7 million tonnes in 2004 against 8.1 million tonnes in the year before.
The company has signed a five-year contract to transport polyethylene for Borouge, but Adnatco is researching and planning transportation needs for Borouge beyond 2010. The current contract for 2005-2010 envisages usage of one ship on a full-time basis and a second ship on part time.
Adnatco’s ships have been chartered by all the oil majors including Mobil, Exxon, BP, Shell, Texaco, Chevron and Ashland and by oil traders including Mitsubishi, Mitsui, Itochu and Idemitsu. The ships have called at ports in the US, South America, Australia, Southeast Asia and the Mediterranean, operating strictly on a competitive basis.
Some of Adnatco’s ships are 22 years’ old. “Adnatco designed its vessels to a very high specification, in equipment selection, protection of steel and layout of machinery to enable easy maintenance,” said general manager Mohammed Salem Obeid Aldhaheri.  The official explained why the ships as old as 22 years were still employed by companies such as Shell and BP. “The construction of vessels was supervised very closely. Because of this, during the last 22 years, the vessels have had a very high operational reliability. The tank steel protective coating is original and in excellent condition even now. The cargo systems reliability, meaning there are no delays or cargo contamination, is among the reasons for customer confidence.”
Adnatco was one of the first shipping companies in the Arabian Gulf to be ISM certified and among the first few in the world to be awarded the ISO 14001 (environment) certification.
“In terms of quality, performance and reliability, Adnatco can be rated as one of the highest in the industry,” said Rajinder Bedi, its fleet manager. “This has been often acknowledged by outside agencies dealing with Adnatco. The vessels carry the highest rating, namely CAP 1, for structural conditions. All the vessels have been subjected to inspections by oil majors, port authorities, terminal authorities, safety inspectors and the classification societies for the ISM and ISO.
“We are fortunate to have very highly trained and experienced staff working with the company on the ships and ashore for several years who are constantly monitoring the quality and performance of the vessels. No effort is spared towards the continual improvements in each and every aspect of our vessels.”
Analysing the tanker market during 2004, commercial manager Adel Jebara Al Bufalah said: “Year 2004 was a very good year for ship owners in general. VLCCs crossed and sustained levels in excess of $200,000 per day as against $100,000 per day during 2003, which means a VLCC earned its owner in excess of $32 million over the 12 months. The product tanker market has had a year that will probably be noted in the history books as one of unprecedented prosperity.
“The product tanker fleet has grown substantially during the year and in line with a currently bulging order book is set to expand further as a sum total of 49 per cent of the current trading fleet is delivered into the fleet in the next couple of years. Of course there will be short-term rate volatility, but on average the level of activity should be in the range of the last couple of years.”
Adnatco trades mainly in the tanker and bulk markets.
Currently all its tankers are engaged in time charter and COA business within the Arabian Gulf, transporting clean, dirty and chemical products.
The company does not own any bulk carriers but has been actively engaged in the bulk market by chartering and operating tonnage for Adnoc’s sulphur business. Currently trading has been in the Red Sea and Mediterranean area but the company is exploring the potential for trading in the Chinese, Brazilian and South African markets.