China continues to be a major global player within the maritime industry, with estimates placing as many as 261,000 vessels calling in Chinese ports throughout 2020. A feat made all the more impressive considering the impact of the global pandemic on shipping as an industry at the time. This trend shows no sign of slowing down and the Isle of Man Ship Registry (IOM SR) expects China to remain a key player in the industry for many years to come.
The IOM SR sees China as a key market for the registry; with two-thirds of our fleet being managed from Asia, we feel now is the time to publicise the benefits that the Isle of Mans ‘favoured-nation’ (FN) status brings to our maritime clients.
One lesser known fact about the Isle of Man is that we have held ‘favoured-nation’ status with China since 1996 and importantly there is no expiry date for this status for the IOM SR. FN status ensures equal trading amongst World Trade Organisation members by requiring a country to provide any concessions, privileges, or immunities granted to one nation in a trade agreement to all other WTO member countries.
Under the FN agreement, IOM registered vessels are privy to preferential tonnage rates when calling in Chinese ports, these rates apply to all vessels based on their net tonnage and represent an average saving of 28% for any vessel regardless of tonnage. Actual rates against tonnage are given in the table below:
|
CHINESE TONNAGE DUE - TARIFF (IN CNY) |
|||||||
|
|
NORMAL |
NORMAL |
NORMAL |
PREFERENTIAL |
PREFERENTIAL |
PREFERENTIAL |
SAVINGS |
|
NRT (MT) |
ONE YEAR |
90DAYS |
30DAYS |
ONE YEAR |
90DAYS |
30DAYS |
% |
|
2000 and below |
12.60 |
4.20 |
2.10 |
9.00 |
3.00 |
1.50 |
28.6 |
|
2001-10000 |
24.00 |
8.00 |
4.00 |
17.40 |
5.80 |
2.90 |
27.5 |
|
10001-50000 |
27.60 |
9.20 |
4.60 |
19.80 |
6.60 |
3.30 |
28.3 |
|
Over 50001 |
31.80 |
10.60 |
5.30 |
22.80 |
7.60 |
3.80 |
28.3 |
A sampling of vessels was taken from our database and used to calculate the savings over 1 year for some common types of vessel:
|
Vessel Type |
Average Tonnage |
Normal |
Preferential |
Average Saving ($) |
|
Bulk Carrier |
43700 |
190000 |
138440 |
52000 |
|
Container |
18700 |
83000 |
59240 |
24000 |
|
Oil Tanker |
20500 |
91000 |
64940 |
26000 |
|
Gas Carrier |
22500 |
99000 |
71280 |
28000 |
The competitive advantage offered to our customers by association with the registry is clear to see; as the FN agreement holds no expiry date our clients can not only reduce their operating costs now but continue to capitalise on those savings well into the future. It is our hope to continue bringing these advantages to our clients wherever we can.
For more information or to enquire about registering a vessel with the IOM SR, please contact registry.marine@gov.im