WHY OSLO? - Oslo Maritime Nettverk

WHO’S in OSLO?
A global hub of shipping companies The creation of
the Norwegian International Ship Register (NIS) in 1987 led to
growth in the Norwegian share of the world’s shipping fleet, and
the new tax regime, based on the EU tax exemption on shipping
and related activities, sets the stage for further growth.
Norwegian shipping companies today control five per cent of
the world’s merchant fleet. They are large and demanding customers
for goods and service suppliers, stimulating continuous
innovation in the entire maritime cluster. The close cooperation
between demanding owners and the rest of the maritime cluster
is of vital importance to both parties and a key to understanding
Oslo’s attractiveness for maritime companies.
World leading maritime finance Norway is today one of
the largest ship financing nations in the world, with Oslo-based
DnB NOR and Nordea as the two leading organisers of syndicated
shipping loans. The attractiveness of Oslo as a centre
of ship finance is proved by Stockholm-based Nordea’s choice
to locate their shipping headquarter in Oslo and Danske Bank’s
recent choice to locate their shipping division at the Oslo office
of Fokus Bank, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Danske Bank.
In 2001, the International Maritime Exchange (IMAREX) was
established in Oslo as the first professional freight derivatives
exchange for the global maritime industry within freight of
oil, refined products, and other bulk commodities. Oslo Børs
(Bourse) is also a natural ally of the maritime cluster. Its position
as a leading market for shares in maritime enterprises has
evolved along with the shipping activities. It is also attractive
as an international shipping exchange, with companies like the
Greek-owned Tsakos Energy Navigation listed since 1994.
Norway holds 20% of global insurance market
The market for ship insurance is relatively concentrated with a
few players operating on a global scale. Norwegian companies
hold approximately 20 percent of the world market. One of the
leading insurance companies (P&I clubs) of the world, Skuld,
operates globally from its headquarter in Oslo. Leading marine
insurers such as Gard and the Norwegian Hull Club, and global
insurance brokers Willis, Marsh and Aon Grieg, are also represented
through offices in the Oslo region.
“The maritime cluster in Norway is a fundamental
and stable basis for maintaining and developing
insurance products and services that are demand-
ed by both national and international clients”
Tore Forsmo, former Managing Director of Cefor (The Nordic Association of
Marine Insurers), Oslo, now director of Competence and Recruiting in the
Norwegian Shipowners’ Association
Finance
Education
Equipment
and maritime
services
R&D
THE OSLO REGION MARITIME CLUSTER
SHIPPING
Shipbrokers
DNV
Legal
services
Insurance
World class ship brokers Shipbrokers are the mediators
in four markets – freight, sales and purchase, newbuilding
and demolition – linking sellers and buyers of ships, and ship
owners to charterers and yards. The 1990’s saw dramatic increases
in the number of shipbroker companies in Norway and
Oslo, where there are approximately 180 registered brokerages.
Though most of these are smaller firms, the two largest,
Fearnleys and R.S Platou, are widely known and respected,
and both are among the world’s largest ship broking groups.
High quality legal services Legal services in the maritime
sector are routinely required for contentious and noncontentious
work relating to a wide range of matters including
charter parties, shipbuilding, finance, commodities,
energy, insurance, cargo, collision, salvage, general average
and pollution. Vogt og Wiig and Wiikborg Rein are two of the
best-known of Oslo law firms specialising in maritime law and
transactions, joined by Nordisk Defence Club. The Scandinavian
Institute of Maritime Law at the University of Oslo is one
of the leading centers in the world for maritime legal studies,
and an important part of the cluster.
16 % share of the world ship classification market
DNV (Det Norske Veritas) is one of the oldest and most important
members of Oslo’s maritime cluster. The company is one
of the four largest ship classification companies in the world,
and its market share has grown significantly in recent years. A
cornerstone of the Oslo maritime cluster, DNV is a knowledge
and R&D intensive enterprise, and is and one of Norway’s most
international enterprises, with over 300 offices in more than
100 countries.