Rutter Technologies has won contracts to supply its Voyage Data Recorder (VDR) to the Norwegian Kristian Gerhard Jebsen (KGJS) fleet and to the Greek shipping group comprised of Kristen Navigation Inc., Anangel Maritime Services Inc, Alpha Tankers & Freighters International Ltd. Under two separate contracts KGJS will order 24 VDRs and the Greek fleet owners 56, for a total of 80 units.
The VDR Market - International Maritime Organization (IMO) regulations require certain classes of vessels to carry a voyage data recorder and Rutter estimates that there are 1,500 such vessels being built each year. Additionally, the IMO is requiring existing cargo vessels greater than 3,000 GT and travelling in international waters to be retrofitted with a VDR by 2010. We believe that this impacts between 13,000 and 15,000 cargo vessels worldwide and that the overall market through 2010 exceeds $1 billion.