Gold Magazine March - April 2013, Issue 24 | Seite 28

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SHIPPING

BSM CYPRUS

B

ernhard Schulte Shipmanagement
(Cyprus) Ltd., formerly Hanseatic
Shipping Co. Ltd., was founded in
1972 as the first Shipmanagement
company on the island. In 2008 Hanseatic Shipping combined forces with three other
shipmanagement organisations to establish Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement, a group providing
an unparalleled range of maritime and engineering
services. Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement operates the BSM Maritime Training Centre (Cyprus) Ltd.
in Limassol. The school is an IMO-approved Maritime Training Centre operating under the auspices
of the Cyprus maritime administration.

the existing double tax treaties and the high educational standards of the local population. Cyprus
remains one of the most competitive locations for
shipmanagement, especially following its success
in gaining European Commission approval for the
taxing of shipmanagement companies under the
new Tonnage Tax.

2. Cyprus still remains the biggest third party
shipmanagement centre internationally. However,
this should not make the authorities or, indeed, the
companies relax as a number of other countries
within and outside the eurozone are trying to compete. Malta has built on Cyprus’ biggest deficiency
– the Turkish boycott – but Luxembourg is also t rying to compete by making changes to its maritime
legislation. The boycott of the Cyprus flag/Cyprus
management by Turkey needs to be overcome
through the provision of additional benefits. The
success of Cyprus two years ago in extending the
Tonnage Tax system to other areas of shipping with
the blessing of the European Commission raised
Cyprus to another level. Certain other aspects of the
general legislation also give an added advantage

1. Cyprus has always been an important maritime
centre with tremendous commercial importance.
Modern shipping history started in Cyprus as
recently as 1972 and since then Cyprus has become a strategic player in the maritime industry
and one of the most important domains for third
party shipmanagement. One reason why the company chose Cyprus was the island’ s advantages:
good communications and geographical location,

L

3. The CSC has been trying for years to convince
the Cypriot authorities to appoint either a minister
or a deputy minister for Maritime Affairs. These
efforts were made in an attempt to remove bureaucratic delays and resolve other pending issues for
the shipping industry and the flag. We sincerely
hope that this will become reality very soon. Among
the new government’s priorities is the appointment
of an Under-Secretary for Shipping which will
further boost the value of shipping for the island, in
addition to the increased value thanks to its newfound energy resources. The human element is also
important and Cyprus needs to build on this locally.
This has always been one of the leading factors
attracting the industry to operate from Cyprus.

LEMISSOLER NAVIGATION

emissoler Navigation, established
in 1996 and based in Limassol, is a
diversified shipping group with many
years of expertise in liner shipping,
ship management services and shipowning activities. It manages all its owned fleet
and offers third party shipmanagement services
to reputable owners. The ship management
division of the Group has expanded exponentially
over the years and it offers a complete range of
services such as crew, technical and commercial
management as well as chartering and operation.
Philippos Philis,
Chairman
and CEO,
Lemissoler
Navigation Co.
Ltd

to shipping companies. Another important attraction of Cyprus is the availability, cost benefits and
standard of its human resources.  Due to the expansion of shipping activities on the island, the number
of highly-educated, experienced personnel makes
the running of operations with experienced local
residents practical. From my perspective, Cyprus
has been and will continue to be the place to run
shipping and associated business!

1. Cyprus has been and will remain a very
attractive location for foreign and local shipping
companies. As a local Cypriot company we have
benefited, like all foreign companies that have

settled here, from the reputation of our legal system, the newly-established, favourable Tonnage
Tax system and a pool of highly-educated employees covering the whole spectrum of expertise
within our industry.

2. Many countries have managed to create a
positive status for themselves over the years but
we at Lemissoler believe that Cyprus remains one
of the key players in the global shipping industry.
We hope that the government will continue to support the industry and protect the Tonnage Tax system and the announced post of an Under-Secretary
for Shipping should become effective the soonest
possible. The Under-Secretary’s priority tasks will
be to promote the tax regime as well as to intensify
efforts aimed at lifting the Turkish embargo.

Arthur
McWhinnie,
Managing
Director, BSM
Cyprus

CO. LTD

3. Apart from the lifting of the Turkish embargo,
what Cyprus needs is strong ship financing
representation by the major foreign banks and
the adaptation of legislation to accommodate
the operation of Hedge and specialized Shipping
Funds. Furthermore, the government should support research by local universities by allocating
adequate funds and giving incentives to develop
systems related to our industry and the protection
of the environment. It goes without saying that
the Department of Merchant Shipping, which is
one of the most efficient governmental departments in Cyprus, should continue to improve its
systems, its responsiveness and attractiveness,
and to promote the Cyprus Flag as one of the best
worldwide.

N CO. LTD

I

INTERSHIP NAVIGATIO

ntership Navigation Co. Ltd was founded in
1988. A member of the Hartmann Group, it
is primarily a shipowning company but it has
expanded into full management for a small
number of owners. Intership presently manages a fleet of general cargo ships, bulk carriers
and product carriers. In addition to the full management, Intership is crew manager for a further 120
vessels of a diverse group of owners. The crewing
department is today employing some 5,000 seafarers of various nationalities.

1. Intership Navigation celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. In the mid-late ‘80s, many
German shipowners were struggling and looking for
ways to reduce costs, one of which was outsourcing the manning of vessels, which could be done
more cost effectively by dedicated management
companies outside Germany. Whilst Intership was

initially established to support the Hartmann Group
in its crewing needs, it quickly became a shipowner
in its own right .The good shipping infrastructure,
favourable taxation (the Tonnage Tax system) and
Department of Merchant Shipping support for ships
registered under the Cyprus flag (more than 90% of
Intership’s vessels fly the Cyprus flag) have created
an environment which Intership will continue to use
as its base.

2. There are several ‘shipping centres’ around the
world but most attract commercial management
rather than the technical shipmanagement carried
out from Cyprus. There are also the ‘natural’ shipping centres, which have developed organically
over time (London, Athens, Oslo, Hamburg, etc.) and
there are those centres which, in more recent years,
have attracted shipping-related businesses mainly
by offering tax incentives. Cyprus was established

as a shi powning/shipmanagement centre more than
40 years ago and it has developed into a fully-fledged
cluster of maritime companies, including most major
classification societies, suppliers and agents of major
makers of ship components, insurance
Dieter
brokers, etc. So those shipping centres
Rohdenburg,
Managing
which have been established more recently
Director,
will need time to replicate a similar cluster
Intership
to that existing in Cyprus.
Navigation Co
Ltd
3. The existing shipping cluster should
be expanded to include a broader representation of
the commercial sector of shipping. It would also be
a major step forward if ship financing banks could
be attracted to operate from Cyprus. The Turkish
embargo of the Cyprus flag and vessels managed
from Cyprus continues to be a major problem for
those operating ships from Cyprus. The shipping
community hopes that this matter will be resolved as
soon as possible.

28 Gold THE INTERNATIONAL INVESTMENT, FINANCE & PROFESSIONAL SERVICES MAGAZINE OF CYPRUS

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07/03/2013 12:25