One of the leading lights in the Greek maritime world has joined Palau International Ship Registry (PISR) as its new Technical Director.

Michael Mantzafos is Rear Admiral (Retd) of the Hellenic Coast Guard, President of Η.Ι.Μ.Τ. (Hellenic Institute of Marine Technology), a Member of the Administrative Council of the Union of Cruise Shipowners & Associated Members and has been a Marine Technical Consultant in Hellenic Lloyd’s S.A/Lloyd’s Register Group since 2004.

He joins PISR as the registry is expanding – in 2017 it was the fastest growing flag in the industry – and will bring a vast knowledge of maritime affairs, shipping expertise and technical insight into the registry. Based in Greece, Michael Mantzafos has an enviable reputation in maritime affairs and Panos Kirnidis, CEO of Palau International Registry, sees this as a major coup and stepping stone for the registry.

“Michael Mantzafos will bring his technical knowledge and skills to Palau but he will also bring us into contact with a vast array of people in the shipping world. We believe this is the next step in our development and our fleet will benefit from his experience and drive, as well as his abilities to reach out to the wider maritime world to help our owners and operators who have put their trust in the Registry. We are delighted he is joining us and he will be a major part of our drive to grow PISR even more in the next 12 months.”

Michael Mantzafos sees his new role as vital for a registry that has ambitions to become one of the world leaders in the shipping world.

”I recognise how much Palau has grown in the past year and when I was asked to join the registry I knew it was at a good time. They have the drive and enthusiasm to grow and allied to a strong technical base with innovative software and new developments, it is a challenge I am really looking forward to.”

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