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40 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News • JULY 2014 Give a brief description of the market you serve. TX Greek shipowners have historically been very supportive of the RMI fl ag. Today Greek ship- owners represent nearly 25 million gross tons of the RMI fl eet. They are the largest group of owners in the Registry, followed by U.S. and German owners. According to a recent paper published by the Greek Shipping Cooperation Committee, the RMI Registry gained approximately half of the vessels purchased by Greek owners and more than 40% of the gross ton- nage added to the Greek fl eet in 2013. That same pa- per shows that 16% of Greek owned vessels fl y the RMI fl ag and the RMI fl ag is the fastest growing in the market. Greek shipowners invested around $13 billion in 2013, and already $5 billion in Q1 2014 for new- building tonnage according to a report by The TOC. CM The Liberian Registry is one of the world’s largest and most active shipping registers, serving quality ships engaged in international trade. Liberia recently surpassed all-time tonnage records and the registry continues to grow. The fl eet now stands at approximately 4,000 ships, aggregating 136m gt and more than 207m dwt. What has been the trend or market condition that has most affected business in the past year? CM Owners are ordering ships again, and there is a great deal of private equity funding entering the market, in the U.S. and elsewhere, which is fi lling the shortfall created by a reduction in traditional bank fi nance for shipping. Liberia has the second-highest share based on market capitalization of shipping com- panies listed on the U.S. stock exchange, behind only the U.S. We expect that the use of private equity capi- tal will continue to fund newbuilding and secondhand ship purchases throughout 2015 and 2016. TX Our business is to register ships, while at the same time ensuring that vessels under the RMI fl ag are in compliance with national and international rules and requirements. If you look at RMI registra- tions within the last fi ve years, it is clear that more than 60% of the vessels registered were newbuildings. A report published in the fall of 2013 which was based on the Korean Shipyards’ orderbook showed that the RMI fl ag was the second largest fl ag represented. It is anticipated that the average age of the fl eet will continue to stay below ten years of age based on the known orderbook. One area that really began to change as early as 2012 was the activity of private equity funds and their investment into shipping. This has resulted in a num- ber of acquisitions that entered the RMI fl eet. This trend has continued into 2014. Considering the legislative and fi nancial consider- ations, what do you consider to be the biggest chal- lenge to your business in the coming few years? TX One of the major challenges that all fl ag State administrations face today is the proliferation of regulation. Flag States must employ people with the knowledge, experience and capacity to ensure that their fl agged vessels operate in accordance with in- ternational rules and regulations. Furthermore, Flag States must be adequately and effectively represented at the International Maritime Organization (IMO), where all international conventions and regulations are introduced. The RMI has a strong IMO delegation including a permanent representative. The delegation liaises with industry stakeholders and receives ap- propriate feedback from owners, operators and other Marshall Islands Quality Council (MIQC) members and its advisory groups. Another major challenge is providing support and assistance to owners and op- erators that have suffered due to market conditions. SHIP REGISTRIES Ship Registries are an excellent bellwether of industry health and trends, and when Maritime Reporter & Engineering News sought answers to some topical questions, it went to two of the top organizations in the world, speicifi cally Theo Xenakoudis, Worldwide Business Operations Offi cer, International Registries, Inc. & Christian Mollitor, Vice- President, Liberian Registry/ LISCR, LLC. By Greg Trauthwein “Owners are ordering ships again, and there is a great deal of private equity funding entering the market, in the U.S. and elsewhere, which is fi lling the shortfall created by a reduction in traditional bank fi nance for shipping.” Christian Mollitor, Liberian Registry/LISCR, LLC Private Equity Drives New Ship Buys MR #7 (32-41).indd 40 7/3/2014 9:32:16 AM
