Over 100 representatives of the Japanese shipping community attended a reception in Tokyo on March 27 to celebrate the opening of North P&I club’s new branch office Japan.
Located in Tokyo’s central Kyobashi commercial district, the new office complements the A-rated 170 million GT club’s existing Asia-Pacific branches in Hong Kong and Singapore.
Nobutaka Mukae, president of Kumiai Senpaku – one of Japan’s leading independent shipowners, was a guest speaker at the reception, which took place at the Imperial Hotel in Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo. He formally welcomed North to Japan and wished the club every success for the future. Other Japanese members attending included IMECS, Kambara Kisen, Northstar, NYK, Sandigan, Synergy and Unitra Maritime. Several other leading Japanese shipowners were present, along with local brokers.
They were welcomed by North’s new Japan office general manager, Kunio Fukumoto, joint deputy general managers Masaki Ida and Malcolm Allinson, and senior executive Tatsuya Nagai. Also hosting were director Alan Lo, from Hong Kong; joint managing director Paul Jennings, director Thya Kathiravel and associate director Iain Beange from the UK, and manager James Moran from Singapore.
"Japan is a shipping community and nation of tremendous international importance, with a modern and sophisticated fleet and a commitment to quality and safety,” said Jennings. “We first started working with Japan-related shipowners just six years ago and, since then, our total entry from Japanese owners and affiliates has grown to approximately 4 million GT. We are delighted to be working with the Japanese shipping community and to have the opportunity to increase our involvement and support in the coming years.’