International Registries, Inc. and its affiliates (IRI), who provide administrative and technical support to the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) Registry, announced that it is ”proud to continue to be entrusted with the registration of state of the art eco-ships by Japanese Shipowners”.
Following the registration of MOLs vehicle carrier EMERALD ACE in 2012, and Sugahara Kisens bulk carrier DOUBLE DELIGHT in July 2015, the RMI Registry just welcomed K Lines vehicle carrier which has a capacity of 7,539 cars, the HAWAIIAN HIGHWAY. The EMERALD ACE was the first ship of its size in to employ a hybrid electric plant including having a full top deck fitted with solar panels. The DOUBLE DELIGHT is of the newest design developed by Imabari Shipbuilding called Aero-Citadel which enhances both energy efficiency and anti-piracy measures.
We are delighted by these latest additions to the fleet which demonstrate that leading Japanese owners have confidence in the RMI Registry to provide technical assistance for a broad range of vessel types, said Mr. Gallagher, President of IRI.
I would like to thank our clients and other industry stakeholders in Japan for their continuous support and significant contribution to the flags fleet growth, he continued.
I am also very proud that the RMI Registry is perceived as the most proactive flag State in Japan because we render the most up-to-date information that will impact our local ship operators, said Masaharu Okamoto, IRI Representative in Tokyo.
IRI recently held two seminars last week in Tokyo and Imabari to provide information on the 2010 STCW Manila Amendments. Many of our operators employ Philippine seafarers so these seminars were well-received, continued Masaharu Okamoto. The seminars had more than 120 attendees in Tokyo and 80 attendees in Imabari respectively.
There are now 178 Japanese owned vessels in the RMI fleet totaling eight (8) million gross tons, said Masaharu Okamoto. As of mid-October 2015, the RMI Registry stood at just over 126 million gross tons with more than 3,600 vessels. IRI opened its 27th worldwide office in Manila, the Philippines to support this unprecedented growth amongst flag States.
The fleet has been growing rapidly largely in part to our ability to provide timely services through our decentralized model, said Bill Gallagher, President of IRI. Opening an office in Manila is a natural fit for the Registry as more than 35% of seafarers serving on RMI flagged vessels hail from the Philippines, he said.
It is our expectation that this office will be able to service crew documentation needs of our owners and operators in that area in coordination with our Hong Kong and Mumbai offices thus improving the speed with which seafarers documents are issued, said Annie Ng, Head of Asia for IRI.
The office is already staffed by four personnel and will be headed by Leo Bolivar who has a background working for companies like Stolt-Nielsen Philippines, Inc., Uljanik Shipmanagement, Ulstein Marine Services and Navis Maritime Services, all with respect to ship and crew management, she continued.
With the additional personnel in Manila, IRIs worldwide staff is now over 350 employees.
Source: RMI
