Liberian Registry Holds Training Seminar in South Korea

[By: Liberian Registry]

Last week, the Liberian International Ship and Corporate Registry (LISCR) held its annual training seminar in South Korea at the Commodore Hotel in Busan. It was well attended by over 80 maritime professionals from various segments of the shipping industry, including: shipowners, management companies, class societies, equipment manufactures, and shipyards. The speakers included: Mr. Thomas Klenum, LISCR’s Executive Vice President of Innovation and Regulatory Affairs; Mr. Dallas Smith, LISCR’s Head of LNG and Alternative Fuels; and Mr. J. S. Kim, the Managing Director of LISCR Korea.

The agenda for this event covered a wide variety of topics, including LNG, alternative fuels, Port State Control compliance, IMO regulatory framework, decarbonization and joint industry projects (JIP). Mr. Thomas Klenum was quoted expressing “It was great to be back in Korea again” and reflected on the Liberian Registry’s view on “the IMO regulatory framework, opportunities for innovation, and our participation in JIPs and Joint Development Projects. Our interactions with the Korean shipbuilders, classification societies and other key stakeholders are key drivers for our industry’s joint pursuit to decarbonize international shipping in line with IMO’s initial GHG emission reduction strategy.” Furthermore, he views this seminar as “an opportunity to express our appreciation and thanks to the Korean maritime community for their strong support to the Liberian Registry’s growth in Korea in terms of both Korean ship owners flying the Liberian flag and the Korean shipbuilder’s collaboration with the Liberian Registry.” He emphasized that “our goal is to help develop and approve new optimized, competitive, and environmentally friendly ship designs for the future, which will also benefit our global environment and climate.”  

This is the 2nd global seminar the Liberian Registry has hosted this year, the first one held in Athens in March.  Mr. Dallas Smith, from LISCR Headquarters in Dulles, VA, said, “It was great to finally get in front of the professionals from the shipping industry in South Korea and discuss the ongoing decarbonization challenges. We are going to have to work together as a whole to ensure we can have a smooth transition industry to a zero-emission sustainable future.  The Liberian Registry is always looking for new opportunities to work with our partners to help remove barriers to approving new technologies, innovative design features and alternative fuels.”  This type of partnership is the key reason the Liberian Registry is leading the way to decarbonization.  They currently have issued over 30 AIPs for JIPs, have the most deep-drafted dual fueled vessel on the water, and over 28% of the market share of ordered newbuild LNG Carriers.

Meanwhile, the delegations of the Liberian Registry who visited Korea for this seminar also visited Korean Register of Shipping (KR) on the 12th to discuss major maritime issues with the top management including Chairman & CEO, Hyung-Cheol Lee, and to solidify mutual cooperation in future industrial cooperation programs and the Liberian Registry received KR’s unique seal plaque.