The Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) Registry has strengthened its provision of services for the South Korean shipowning market with the appointment of Thomas Blenk as Safety & Technical Manager in Busan. Mr. Blenk has 19 years of experience with the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), culminating in a role overseeing ABS’s global business development.
International Registries, Inc. and its affiliates (IRI) provide administrative and technical support to the RMI Maritime and Corporate Registries. Bill Gallagher, President of IRI, stated that “a quality, growing ship registry needs to ensure that it is able to support its owners with a highly efficient, user-friendly service from capable professionals worldwide.”
“IRI is committed to resourcing the Registry with the breadth and depth of expertise needed to manage a fleet that today comprises over 4,000 vessels,” continued Bill Gallagher.
“We now have over 450 personnel in our 27 offices worldwide; Thomas Blenk joins this team as an extremely experienced manager who understands every aspect of vessel safety and day-to-day operations,” concluded Bill Gallagher.
Commenting on the appointment, Annie Ng, Head of Asia, IRI, added, “Captain Kim, Representative, IRI Seoul, has been instrumental in growing our market share in South Korea; South Koreans are the third largest shipowning group in the Registry and is a very important market for us.”
“Having a senior marine technical and safety expert locally is crucial and benefits not only the Korean shipping community, but also provides another senior resource for our owners and operators throughout Asia,” concluded Annie Ng.
IRI has had a presence in South Korea since 2007 when the company opened an office in Seoul.
