At its Annual General Meeting in Port Douglas, Queensland, today (25 May), the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) elected a new Chairman, Mr Masamichi Morooka (Japan).

ICS is the principal international trade association for shipowners, with a membership comprising national shipowners’ associations from 36 countries representing all sectors and trades and over 80% of the world merchant fleet.

With immediate effect, Mr Morooka has been elected to succeed Spyros M Polemis (Greece) who has decided to stand down after six years in office. Being at the helm of the industry’s most influential international trade association, Mr Morooka will serve as a leading representative of the global shipping industry, overseeing its liasion with international regulators such as the International Maritime Organization and the International Labour Organization.

Speaking after his unanimous election today, Mr Morooka remarked: “I am very honoured to have been elected by the ICS member national shipowners’ associations. Being Chairman is a big responsibility and my primary task will be to ensure that ICS continues to represent the considered views of the entire industry. This means reflecting and reconciling the opinions of different ship types and trades, different national viewpoints, and the interests of shipping companies big and small.”

Mr Morooka continued: “Within ICS there are perhaps three big challenges on which we will need to focus this year: the elimination of piracy; the challenge of reducing CO2 emissions, and our response to proposals that must be expected from governments following the ‘Costa Concordia’ cruise ship tragedy.”

He added: “More generally, ICS will continue to fight for the maintenance of global rules for our global industry, and continuous improvement with respect to our safety record and environmental performance, bearing in mind always our ultimate goal of zero accidents and zero negative impact on the environment.”

At a concluding dinner at the ICS AGM, Mr Morooka highlighted the dedication and commitment of the Immediate Past Chairman, Spyros Polemis.

Mr Morooka commented: “Spyros has steered ICS throughout his time in office with conviction and professionalism, leaving ICS in a strong and highly respected position. I will endeavour to do the same on behalf of our national shipowners’ associations and the industry which we collectively represent.”

Mr Morooka will be supported in his important new role by four ICS Vice Chairmen: Captain Dirk Fry (Cyprus), Mr Frank Leonhardt (Germany), Mr Trygve Seglem (Norway) and Mr Gerardo Borromeo (Philippines). Mr Polemis (Greece) will continue to assist in his capacity as Immediate Past Chairman.