FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(April 26, 2004)

The Marshall Islands Registry has exceeded the 20 million (m) gross ton (gt) mark. As of March 31, 2004 there were 668 ships totalling 21.26m gt flying the Marshall Island flag, a 29.5 percent increase over the 16.43m gt which was registered 12 months ago.

Having tripled the size of its fleet, from 7m to 21m gt, in the space of four years, the Marshall Islands is steadily moving up the list of the world’s top ten registers in terms of tonnage and quality. The Marshall Islands Registry has the largest share of US owned tanker tonnage, while in Europe, major growth is coming from Germany, Norway and Greece, as more owners in these countries choose the Registry.

The rapid growth in the fleet has been accompanied by an ongoing commitment to ensure that the high level of quality set by International Registries, Inc. (IRI), the administrator of the Marshall Islands Registry, is not only maintained but also continuously improved. Fundamental to this quality commitment is the decentralization of operations which provides customers with worldwide, 24-hour local service for vessel and corporate registrations and operational matters.

IRI continues to invest in its staff and its systems. The company’s worldwide staff of over 100 employees includes experts covering the full range of flag state maritime responsibilities, from ship safety, security and accident investigation to radio licensing, crew qualifications and licensing, crew identity books and documentation, and safety and security inspections. The latest IRI appointment is Jack Polderman, formerly Senior Vice President Marine Services for North and South America at Lloyd’s Register (LR). Jack retired from LR in 2003 after 33 years with the class society. For IRI he is focusing on technical investigations, inspection regimes and requirements and other technical marine issues.

IRI retains consultants to advise on key topical issues and to help in the formulation of not only the administration’s policy but also the systems needed to implement such policy effectively. Two of the leading IRI consultants are Rear Admiral Robert North, US Coast Guard (Ret.) and formerly in charge of the Coast Guard’s Maritime Safety Division, and Dan Sheehan, former Director of Information and Technology for the US Coast Guard. Both Admiral North and Dan Sheehan play a leading role in the work of the Marshall Islands Quality Council (MIQC) which meets approximately two times a year. In addition, both participate on the Marshall Islands Delegation that attends IMO meetings. The Marshall Islands Delegation, which can number up to five maritime experts at major IMO meetings, plays an active role in all discussions on flag state related issues.

“We are pleased to note that there is a growing awareness in the industry that intensifying port state and flag state scrutiny of ship safety and security performance can jeopardize the profitability of the less-committed shipowner,” states Bill Gallagher, IRI president. “We are focused on the quality conscious owner who wants to make use of our expertise, global network and systems to help ensure that port state detentions and charterer rejections are kept to a minimum,” he continued.

A measure of the benefits derived from a quality commitment is given by the administration’s continuously improving port state detention record. For example, the 2002 Annual Report of the Paris MOU (the latest available) shows that 8 of the 208 Marshall Islands (MI) ships inspected in Paris MOU ports were detained in comparison to 9 detentions out of 176 inspections in 2001. In other words, 3.85% of MI ships were detained, against a Paris MOU average in 2002 of 7.98%, while in 2001, 5.11% of MI ships were detained against an overall Paris MOU average of 9.09%. The recently published 2003 United States Coast Guard (USCG) Annual Report also shows improvement. In 2003 only 1 out of 236 MI ships was detained for a detention ratio of 0.42% against a USCG average of 1.99% versus 3 detentions out of 162 MI ships inspected in 2002 for a detention ratio of 1.85% against a USCG average of 2.52%.

Another example of the Registry’s quality commitment is its no-nonsense approach to implementation of the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code. Over the past year, shipowners and managers of vessels registered in the Marshall Islands have been kept appraised of their obligations in a timely fashion. These parties were instructed to submit their Ship Security Plans (SSPs) to a Recognised Security Organisation (RSO) by March 15, 2004. That deadline was necessary to ensure that the RSOs would have enough time to review the SSPs, and also to enable the ships to have an SSP on board for the mandatory implementation period of 60 days prior to the entry-into-force date of July 1, 2004.

“For the Marshall Islands Registry, fleet growth and a quality commitment have gone hand-in-hand,” states Bill Gallagher. “There is an increasing awareness in the maritime industry that an improving quality performance not only brings environmental and safety benefits but also reduces costs. We are pleased to report that it can also lead to strong growth.”

Asia is the latest focus for expansion of the global IRI network. This expansion was brought on by a strong increase in the number of Asian shipowners registering vessels with the Marshall Islands. At the end of 2003, IRI opened an office in Singapore, while offices in Shanghai and Tokyo will follow later in 2004. IRI is also increasing its representation in India and the Philippines to help meet the strong demand among owners of Marshall Islands vessels for Indian and Filipino seafarers. IRI representatives in Brazil, Chile and Egypt were also added to the network in 2003.