Past Event

NOR-SHIPPING 2005

June 7-10, 2005
Lillestrøm-Oslo, Norway
www.nor-ship.com

Even for Nor-Shipping veterans this year’s exhibition was the best ever enjoying a booming shipping market, bulging shipyard order books worldwide and excellent weather conditions. The extraordinary growth of the second such event on the fairgrounds of Lillestrøm was reflected by a 19 per cent increase in terms of participating companies.

The fair opened a dynamic environment for strengthening existing personal networks and establishing contacts with world class business partners from Scandinavia, the rest of Europe and countries from overseas. Nor-Shipping has once again given a proof that personal exposure and face to face talks outrange electronic marketing and customer relationships.

With all that euphoria about booming markets, the analysts can not stop asking the question of how long will this situation prevail and what is happening underneath the shiny surface?

The organisers have been significantly increasing their activities to further attract the worldwide shipping community in gaining wider international exposure while there is a great silent exodus of Norwegian ship owners underway. The country’s fleet fell from the third place to the fifth in the world over the past years and there is almost no faith in successful lobbying for a policy change in favour of the maritime sector as state capitalism - fuelled by the off-shore dollars - is favourising other segments of the industry more actively.

All lanes these days lead at some point to China, and any discussion of the state and future of the industry is pre-dictated on how the world’s new industrial power house will be running. Apparently a hybrid - partly an economic super power, partly in the terms of the OECD a developing country trying to make advantage out of both.

This year’s Nor-Shipping took place at the same time as Norway was celebrating its 100th anniversary of the country’s independence from Sweden and the founding of the Royal Norwegian Navy and Coast Guard, an event that was adding up to the exciting cultural and social activities in the capital during the exhibition week.

The Royal Norwegian Navy hosted a huge flotilla of modern naval vessels from across the globe including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Russia, France, Germany and Sweden, while three tall ships and numerous vintage steamers and sailing boats were berthed in the Oslo harbour.

RNoN fast patrol boats in front of Oslo’s Town Hall

RNoN Support Vessel A 535 Valkyrien and Ula class submarine S 303 Utvaer

Kystvakt (Norwegian Coast Guard) Nordkapp class cutter W 322 Andenes of the Coast Guard Squadron South

RNoN Oslo class destroyer F 301 Bergen

RNoN naval officers

Royal Navy Type 23 Duke class frigate F 235 Monmouth

Russian Navy Udaloy II class multipurpose destroyer Admiral Chabanenko

Russian sailors from the Northern Fleet

RNoN Alta class mine sweepers M 350 Alta and M 352 Rauma

Polish Maritime Academy four masted barque Dar Mlodziezy

Reception on board Dar Mlodziezy

Reception on board Dar Mlodziezy; Leszek Wilczynski, CTO and John Kuehmayer, AMEM

On board Statsraad Lehmkuhl
J. Kuehmayer, AMEM

Fjord Cruise Reception of the Dutch Ambassador and his wife on board the three masted barque Statsraad Lehmkuhl; Welcome to Hauke Schlegel from VDMA

Statsraad Lehmkuhl;
Jon W. Thomas, former Nor-Shipping Director
Richard Johnson, Exhibitions Sales Manager, Seatrade

RNoN Landing Vessel L4530 Lokhaug