The classification of Hamburg Süd’s recently-completed 85,676gt container ship Santa Rosa by Germanischer Lloyd has pushed the Germany classification society’s classified fleet to over 100 million gross tons, with more than 7,200 ships from over 1,900 shipping companies currently under its regular technical supervision.
‘We have been able to double the fleet in class over the last six years,’ said Erik van der Noordaa, CEO of the Germanischer Lloyd Group, ‘and we want to have achieved the next ten million gt by the end of next year.’
Of the current Germanischer Lloyd classified fleet, 68 per cent is made up of container ships, while ten per cent is represented by multi-purpose vessels. Bulk carriers account for about nine per cent while tankers make up seven per cent. These ships sail under 114 different flags, the most prevalent being Antigua and Barbuda, Germany, Liberia, Singapore and Cyprus.
• Gross tons describes the size of a ship and is based on the total volume of a ship measured in cubic metres and multiplied by a factor that depends on the ship’s size. The gt measurement has been internationally binding since 1994.
