'Dubai should set up open shipping registry'

Dubai should set up an open shipping registry and an international shipping line, said the president of National Association of Freight Logistics (NAFL).

Mansoor Y A Ghafoor said the formation of both these entities although under active discussion of the government has been delayed in the wake of the crisis and the resulting dip in shipping volumes.

"I call for an international shipping registry in Dubai. It would register only the best of vessels from around the world. This was under discussion earlier," said Ghafoor. "With Dubai being in the centre of a global shipping route and high number of shipping companies having located their offices here Dubai too should have a shipping line. If it can have a global air-carrier like the Emirates, it can also have a global shipping line."

Ghafoor, a member of the 18-member advisory council formed to supervise over the setting-up of Dubai Logistics City, said these entities will compliment the establishment of DCL.

"The construction of logistics city may have been delayed but it's very much happening. I cannot however give a finite timeline for its completion," he said.

An open registry refers to a system of registration where the nationality of the ship owner is different from the country where his ship is registered. The country of registration determines the laws under which the ship is required to operate is applied in relevant admiralty cases.

About half of the world's merchant ships today are registered with such open registries. Traditional reasons for choosing an open register include protection from income taxes, wage scales and regulations. A specific example of the type of advantage flying a flag of convenience offers is bypassing the 50 per cent duty the US Government charges on repairs performed on American-flagged ships in foreign ports.

A rising interest among shipping companies in the UAE and the region to register their vessels with International Registries, a Marshall Islands (a country located between Hawaii and the Philippines) based maritime registry company forced the company to open its office in Dubai senior officials from the company recently said.

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