A DRIVING FORCE IN THE tugboat INDUSTRY

Tug Malta Ltd meets the towage service requirements of the shipping industry and provides a variety of offshore support services. With an excellent safety performance record, trained and experienced crews and a modern, versatile fleet, Tug Malta has evolved as a leader in the port services field. General Manager Malcolm Custo told Hannah Barnett how the company has become a credible, niche player in the Mediterranean offshore segment.

INOctober 2022, Tug Malta’s managing group Rimorchiatori Riuniti agreed to sell 100% of its stake in Rimorchiatori Mediterranei SpA to SAS Shipping Agencies Services Sàrl, the subsidiary holding company of the Swiss shipping giant Mediterranean Shipping Company.

MSC is the world’s largest shipping company : it calls at 500 ports on over 230 trade routes, carrying some 23 million TEU annually. It is also the first ocean carrier to surpass a staggering five million TEUs in fleet capacity, which means the firm holds 17.5% of the global market share.

So, it is no surprise that, in the words of Tug Malta’s General Manager Malcolm Custo, “the acquisition will change the playing field completely.”

Company history

Founded in 1980 as a state-owned company, Tug Malta began operations with just three tugs acquired from two private towage operators. Its location in the important transhipment port and logistics centre of Malta meant that the company soon experienced an exponential increase in demand for towage services.

Plenty more changes came to the company in 2009, when Rimorchiatori Riuniti Group became the 100% shareholder. “This gave us the opportunity to invest in new tugs and a modern fleet, because previously we had tugs which were 20 or 25 years old,” said Mr Custo. “It also gave us the opportunity to venture into the offshore business and not be limited only to local harbour towage.”

Within this context, the recent acquisition by MSC is just the next rung on the ladder for Tug Malta. The company is a proud member of the International Salvage Union (ISU) and an active member of the European Tug Owners’ Association.

Fleet changes

Mr Custo was enthusiastic about the opportunities the takeover looks set to herald: “The synergistic potential of being part of a large group is huge. We already saw this when we became part of Rimorchiatori Riuniti. But now, with MSC, the opportunities and economies of scale are even bigger –both from a purchasing point of view with suppliers, and from our expanding client base.”

Tug Malta has already experienced some of the power a connection to a corporate behemoth can wield. Two years ago, MSC purchased 50% of Palumbo shipyards, a drydocking company in Malta, and started sending ships for repairs on the island. “As a towage company, that doubled our tug activity at the shipyards,” explained Mr Custo. “Now, MSC has added a new shipping route with Malta as a stop off, which means even more business coming to us.”

Tug Malta is already a thriving company ; last year it clocked up an €18 million turnover. €15 million of this it earned from freeport work and oil tanking contracts, with the other €3 million split between work in the Grand Malta harbour and its shipyard.

The company operates eight regular tugs, with an average bollard pull of around 74 tonnes. It has also invested in a smaller tug, with a bollard pull of nine tonnes, to offer services to larger yachts and smaller vessels. “With the larger tugs, we weren't able to offer the service, because the tug would be too large and too powerful, ending up damaging the ship,” Mr Custo explained.

Due to Tug Malta’s commitment to growth and reinvestment, five of the company’s tugs were purchased in the last four years. The newest one, Tug Senglea, was built by the renowned Dutch shipbuilders Damen shipyards, and purchased in 2020. Seven of the tugs have firefighting equipment, whilst three have the facility of oil recovery, which helps if ever there is a pollution incident.

“We keep investing in new and powerful tugs,” said Mr Custo; “We have tugs which have up to an 82-tonne bollard pull capacity. This makes it easier for us to tow large container vessels which are 400 metres and above. The sea is very deep in the ports around Malta, so we get a lot of these larger draft vessels. We need to be well equipped to serve them. And this can only be done with a modern, powerful fleet.”

Safety and supply chain

The MSC acquisition is likely to positively impact Tug Malta’s supply chain, too.

“Most of our tugs, and the tugs of the group, run on Caterpillar engines,” explained Mr Custo. “It makes it easier to come to agreements with the suppliers and get good prices. But it’s even more important to have suppliers who can ship the parts you need quickly, and at short notice. Obviously, once you have a tug which is laid up, it means you have one tug less. But that also means there is a risk that there'll be certain situations where you will not be able to offer an emergency service. We try to avoid that.”

Requests for emergency service assistance are all too real in this industry: Mr Custo emphasised how important some of the company’s endeavours are. He described an incident in March 2022, when two Tug Malta tugboats were required to provide salvage assistance to a 200-metre tanker.

“The day was characterised by very inclement weather,” recalled Mr Custo, “and as a result, the tanker ended up with engine difficulties and was drifting close to the coastline. We had to send two tugs to hold the ship to avoid it running aground. They ended up there for two days until the weather calmed down;. then eventually we managed to bring the vessel to a safe berth.”

Good to its workforce

For a company operating from a small island such as Malta, challenges in staffing are common, especially in the highly skilled tugboat industry. But Tug Malta has turned this into a positive, by ensuring it takes good care of its employees.

“Our crews need to be qualified and it is not easy to find them locally,” said Mr Custo. “We try and recruit apprentices who are studying at local maritime institutes but there aren't enough to meet industry requirements. Also, besides us, there are other key players hunting the same market, for the same skills, so, it is not always easy to find the right people. But this is why we try to create and sustain a culture where if you join Tug Malta, you are happy to remain and grow with us.”

There is little doubt that Tug Malta is a company that looks after its people. Mr Custo emphasised the importance of the supportive, strong team he works alongside. But more than that, he has seafaring in his blood.

“My dad was involved in the maritime industry; I’ve always loved it,” he reflected. “I grew up within it, and that is where my passion comes from. What attracted me to Tug Malta was that it was part of an international group. That already gave me so many different opportunities. And now that we are fully owned by MSC, the opportunities are limitless.” n