Genoa Maritime, a leading ship management company specialised in vegetable oils and fertiliser-carrying vessels, has survived the peaks and troughs of the shipping industry through a cautious and considered approach. Managing Director George Magliveras sees no deviation from that philosophy. However, in conversation with Andy Probert, he is outspoken on the ever-changing and challenging landscape of an industry with which his family has had historical links for nearly 100 years.
Italian-born, Greek-based, Indiancrewed and Norwegian-partnered.
A kaleidoscopic international smorgasbord that describes, but doesn’t define, Managing Director George Magliveras and his aptly named Genoa Maritime. With such a global overview, Mr Magliveras - born in Genoa but now located in Piraeus, Greece – has a unique, if critical, eye on an industry that has changed beyond comprehension since his ship management business launched in 1997, and even more so given his family lineage in shipping dating back to the
1930s. Due to its professed philosophy of ship management enacted through a ship owner’s eyes, Genoa Maritime has remained at the forefront of ship management expertise, backed up by a skilled pool of Indian crews, as well as shore staff having great previous experience at sea, partnered by Norway’s Champion Tankers.
“We approach ship management with a ship owner’s mentality,” said Mr Magliveras. “We believe in the personal touch, and our crews are our priority. Happy ships are productive ships.”
“SHIPPING IS ALREADY HEAVILY REGULATED, BUT EMERGING REGULATIONS ARE BECOMING TOO MUCH. WE MUST LIVE WITH THAT, BUT THE CREW MUST BE THE KEY PRIORITY”
Indeed, the long-standing experience behind Genoa Maritime ensures it stays the course, not only through cyclic highs and lows of the shipping market at large, but to anticipate and prepare itself for more unprecedented changes.
“We established close ties in 2000 with Champion Tankers, and that business alliance is still active today,” Mr Magliveras said. “While Champion Tankers sustains the majority of commercial operations, we perform technical and administrative tasks as well as crewing and related disciplines, together with our own operations. We are unique as a Greek business cooperating with a Norwegian company of this kind.”
Measured approach
Genoa Maritime presently has five vessels under direct management; all chemical tankers between 43,000 and 51,000dwt, and all utilised for the worldwide transportation of edible oils such as sunflower oil, as well as fertilisers. “We are specialised in this trade. It is a niche we enjoy,” he said.
When Inside Marine last spoke with Mr Magliveras in 2020, there were ambitions to diversify into the dry bulk sector. Today, he reflected: “There was an involvement, but not from a ship management point of view. We invested with a close Greek family I have known for over 30 years. They were without ships then, so I helped them, and since 2017 have taken on dry cargo vessels.
“In turn, as they were unfamiliar with the product tanker business they asked us to
help enter this sector. I proposed that our partner, Champion Tankers, could adopt the ships into its fleet while we handled the technical and crew management.
“They accepted, and it has given the family a good base to seek further devel opment as it has the means and the willingness. With Champion’s participation and GM’s input the family are delighted, as we have collectively improved their vessels’ performances in an alternative and additional sector of shipping trade”.
Those close links between Genoa Maritime and the Greek family have conspired to work in each other’s favour. GM has relocated into the same building as the family company running the dry cargo ships, ensuring rapid decisionmaking and a smooth logistic overview.
“We remain independent, but it offers an opportunity for this partnership to supply more ships to Champion in the future,” Mr Magliveras explained. “It’s not GM’s aim to have many ships in its management; we are organised to have six to eight in our fleet.
“Due to market conditions, it is not a good period to buy ships as they are too expensive: the market is much inflated and unpredictable. We take a measured approach and will be patient as the industry is volatile. Timing is everything.”
That volatility is also prevalent in the sector Genoa Maritime specialises in and is skewed by global sanctions due to the Ukraine-Russian conflict. He said: “We have a peculiar situation in which politicians, who don’t understand the world in which
we trade, impose sanctions on goods they do not have, and on people, entities and nations that have these commodities.
“Europe 100 per cent needs edible oils and fertilisers. So, what happens? This distortion fuels the kingdom of the middleman. You do not import directly from sanctioned countries: Instead, the cargo is sold to other countries that don’t apply sanctions. This cargo is then re-exported to the countries applying the sanctions. This is the middleman’s paradise: they benefit from these additional costs. It’s a crazy situation and an awkward one for shippers.”
Industry challenges
Since 2001, Genoa Maritime’s crew management has been organised through its Genmarco Maritime Services office in Mumbai, India. Thus, it maintains
a large pool of between 400 and 500 qualified and experienced officers and ratings.
“Ship management has developed very much since 1997 and is becoming more critical,” said Mr Magliveras. “Nowadays, you must be fully compliant with all the regulations and requirements regarding environmental risk.
“The industry has changed so much over the years. Sometimes there are crazy ideas – look at alternative fuels, such as ammonia and methane. We are not dealing with Einsteins when we are talking about the crew. They are already under too much pressure.
“If we put the obligation on them to utilise dangerous commodities for fuel, then the risk for the ships is much increased. Methanol, for example, is highly flammable and very dangerous.
I appreciate we must improve emissions, but we need to care about safety.
“There are many people around shipping nowadays that don’t know the practice of shipping. It is a tough proposition, a complex profession, and a qualified crew is hard to find. The crew must carry many burdens. If we increase that with sophisticated fuels and safety alerts, I think there will be problems.”
He revealed that another challenge in the industry was the growing regulation around shipping and emissions: “That is very demanding and the most crucial field to stay ahead of.
“Shipping is already heavily regulated, but emerging regulations are becoming too much. We must live with that, but the crew must be the key priority. Yet it is a declining profession, and qualified and loyal crew is hard to find.”
Mr Magliveras highlighted how transp arency and good communication remained the important principles for good relations with crew, clients and suppliers.
“Since 1997, Genoa Maritime has handled more than 40 ships,” he said. “Ultimately, to guarantee a client’s satisfaction with good management from Genoa Maritime is the overall experience. To have the ship owner’s confidence is the utmost for a ship manager.
“Shipping remains the cheapest and safest form of cargo transportation compared to road, rail or air,” Mr Magliveras concluded. “But I find there’s a lot of hypocrisy regarding those that seek to govern shipping. There’s no opportunity to discuss their decisions.
“Essentially, we are the last wheel on the train in the decision-making process, however, we have to bear the responsibility of these decisions. Yet, I and all those associated with Genoa Maritime remain firmly grounded in reality.”
