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Putting the Voice of the Asian Shipping Community in the Global Arena – Well Received Opening Session at Sea Asia

Singapore, Monday April 2, 2007

Promoting Asia’s voice in the global shipping industry was the theme for the opening session of the inaugural Sea Asia conference and exhibition which was launched in Singapore today (Monday April 02, 2007).

More than 850 senior shipping and maritime industry executives heard a panel of leading Asian shipowners debate the importance of the Asian maritime voice.

Today’s opening session included SUN JIAKANG, Managing Director ,COSCO Container Lines, Capt TAKAO MANJI, Senior Managing Director, NYK Line, DOUGLAS HSU, Chairman, U-Ming Marine Transport Corporation and Group Chairman, Far Eastern Group Taiwan; JONG-CHUL LEE, President & CEO, STX PanOcean,  South Korea ;SS TEO, Managing Director of Pacific International Lines,  ANDREAS SOHMEN PAO, Managing Director, BW Shipping, Hong Kong,  FREDERICK TSAO, Chairman, IMC Shipping Co Pte Ltd, Singapore and YUDHISHTHIR KHATAU, Managing Director, Varun Shipping Company and President, Indian National Shipowners Association.

NYK Line’s Capt Manji urged Asia’s maritime industry to speak up and be more proactive. “One cannot take a backseat and be recognized,” he said in a well-received keynote address.

“Asia is often outmaneuvered at international shipping bodies,” he said despite the fact that the region accounts for 40% of seaborne trade.

Andreas Sohmen-Pao, managing director of BW Shipping, agreed, saying: “Asia’s voice is disproportionately small.” He cited three key issues which Asians should be concerned about – vessel scrapping, crewing and protecting the environment.

Governments and shipping companies need to ensure they have high calibre representatives in the right bodies, Sohmen-Pao suggested, before cautioning that “Asians can clamour for a voice but are we ready to give the time and energy to make it heard?”

He also warned that owners in Asia should be careful not to push “regional solutions to global issues.”

Fred Tsao, chairman of IMC, was adamant that “interested parties should have a say in their own destinies”, while SS Teo, managing director of Pacific International Lines, said, “If we want to be heard we have to speak out.”

The heavyweight shipowning panel also turned its attention to the pressing issue of the worldwide shortage of officers.

Capt Manji maintained that the younger generation was not willing to wait eight to 10 years to become a Master so training must somehow be rationalized without compromising safety.

A solution was offered by Yudhishthir Khatau, managing director of Varun Shipping and president of the Indian National Shipowners’ Association (INSA). He called all owners to take cadets onboard for more sea time training, a position INSA is lobbying the International Maritime Organization to make mandatory.

Mr Tsao even suggested that all female crews may soon be commonplace.

As the first day of Sea Asia drew to a close, co-organizers Seatrade and the Singapore Maritime Foundation (SMF) hailed the launch day as a great success.

Christopher Hayman: “By any standard, the opening day of the inaugural Sea Asia has been a significant success. The standard of debate and interaction between panelists and delegates and the overall level of interest in the show have all been above our expectations.”

Ends

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