Panama Registry closes 2020 with 230.5m gt on its booksPanama Registry closes 2020 with 230.5m gt on its books

It was also saw its highest growth of 6.22% registered since 2011, and those “figures make us very proud,” said Rafael Cigarruista, director of the Ship Registry. 

Last year the Registry introduced, a series of improvements including a complete reengineering with market analyses and the introduction of electronic documents for greater users’ satisfaction.

 "The Registry, despite the global economic slowdown created by Covid-19, shows positive figures," said Cigarruista. “There are less vessels, less new constructions, more competitors, more international enforcements; even though, we have achieved a milestone for the Registry in spite of the pandemic,” he added.

 Between January and December 2020, the Registry added 1,033 vessels to its fleet, and 29.7m gt, according to the Panama Maritime Authority's Vessel Report. Of this group, the 339 newly built vessels flying the national flag stand out, totalling 14.3m gt. These figures are the best for the Panamanian Registry since 2011.

The percentage of ship cancellations and tonnage transfers to other registries in 2020 has been reduced by almost 25.8%. This reduction was the lowest in the last 10 years. "We have managed to reduce cancellations due to fleet transfers. This data is very important since it shows that shipowners maintain their confidence in the services given by the Registry," said the director of the Registry.

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The Panamanian flag flies over 16% of the world maritime fleet, in terms of gross tonnage, according to Clarksons Research. These figures demonstrate that the legal security offered by the Registry, the 24/7 attention, the level of professionalism and the effort of the human resource that is part of the Registry, have been fundamental for the Registry’s growth.