Israel Responds to Turkish Trade Ban, Moves Tugboat Order to Bulgaria
The Israel Ports Company, which oversees the operations of the country’s ports, along with the Ministry of Transport, is reporting that they have moved an order for two advanced technology tugboats to a shipyard in Bulgaria in response to the actions of the Turkish government. According to the reports, the order was valued at $30 million and had previously been with an unnamed Turkish shipbuilder.
News of the change came as Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan confirmed in a speech to parliament today, August 29, the country’s new actions against Israel. As has been reported, Turkey is banning Israeli ships from its ports, ships transporting military cargo for Israel, and also, according to the minister, has closed its airspace. Turkish ships are also prohibited from calling at Israeli ports, expanding on a trade ban the government imposed last year.
“Our decision to replace the Turkish shipyard with a friendly shipyard in Bulgaria is an expression of a clear policy,” said Miri Regev of the Minister of Transportation and Road Safety, according to a report in the Israeli news outlet Haipo. “We will not give in to boycotts, but will continue to ensure the strengthening of the ports, the continuity of service, and the independence of the State of Israel's operations.”
The Haifa Maritime Transport Company signed the new contract with Bulgaria’s MTG Dolphin shipyard in Varna, Bulgaria. They will build two tugs to be delivered to the port by the end of 2026.
"The new tugboats are an integral part of our preparations for the coming years,” said Moshe Ben Zaken, Director General of the Ministry of Transportation. “We are working determinedly to provide Israel's ports with the most advanced technological tools to deal with the constant increase in the volume of maritime traffic."
The new tugs will be the most powerful yet deployed in Israel, with a pulling capacity of 85 tons. They will use Rotor tug technology. The plan calls for the new vessels to replace two of the four tugs currently operating in the Haifa port.
Israel in April acquired for approximately $14.6 million a tug named Almog. The VECTOR model tug has a pulling capacity of 73 tons and is currently the most powerful in the country. It was deployed to the port of Ashdod and operates in the southern part of the country.
Turkey has historically been a strong trading partner with Israel. It was exporting building materials such as iron, marble, steel, cement, aluminum, and bricks, as well as fertilizer and construction equipment to Israel. The Bank of Israel reported more than $5.3 billion in exports from Turkey to Israel in 2023 before the prior embargo. Even after the 2024 embargo, unofficial numbers show $100 to $200 million a month in Turkish goods arriving in Israel, according to a report in the Israeli newspaper Globes.