SeaQuest Shipmanagement (SeaQuest) is an independent, privately owned provider of ship management, crewing, ship operations, and maritime consulting services to third parties. SeaQuest’s top management has over 100 years of combined ship management experience and knowledge. For Japanese shipping giants and Japanese shipowners, ship management companies are important partners in the safe operation of ships. SeaQuest says of itself: “We don’t chase size. We want to provide excellent ship management for all the vessels we are entrusted to manage. We want to build good relationships with Japanese shipowners. “We interviewed Mr. Vittorio Portunato, Founder of the company of SeaQuest, about the company’s current situation. (Text by Hirofumi Yamamoto)
1) First, please give us an overview of SeaQuest.
“SeaQuest Shipmanagement is an independent and privately owned provider of Ship management, crewing, ship operation and maritime consultancy services. Established in 1987 by the Portunato brothers – Vittorio & Sebastiano, the company initially specialized in management of one of the most complex vessel types, the OBO ships reaching total capacity of about 700K DWT. Thereafter from year 2000, we actively managed crude oil, product and chemical tankers running world-wide and chartered to all Oil Majors, followed by Gas carriers, General Cargo, Livestock carriers, Container, Ro-Ro’s, Bulkers and offshore vessels.”
“SeaQuest has service centers in Switzerland, Italy, Croatia, Hong Kong, and Manila. We have about 40 vessels under management – half under full technical management and the rest under crewing manning/management services. Presently the fleet consists of Bulkers, General and multi-purpose cargo, Ro-Ro’s, Chemical tanker and one small luxury cruise vessel. We are also active in crewing and have our own crew management services company in Rijeka and a close partner in Manila and India.”
“SeaQuest is a member of InterManager, Intertanko, Rightship, IMEC and contributes to BIMCO’s Shipping KPI’s project.”
2) What kind of relationship does SeaQuest hope to establish with the Japanese shipping industry or shippers?
“SeaQuest has worked with Japanese clients previously under newbuilding projects and Technical management of vessels with good results. We understand that the Japanese market is very close-knit and is relationship-based where trust and comfort factor between individuals is very important. As a small Ship-manager, our aim is not to grow fast at any cost; rather we prefer to grow steadily and be reliable partners with our clients in their growth trajectory. We believe in the Japanese saying 七転び八起き nana korobi ya oki which means we must not give up and must be persistent in our efforts.”
3) What are SeaQuest’s goals?
“We do not aim to be a large Ship management company because our focus is more on providing good service, good quality with sound business principles & ethics and fast response to our customers. Every client, whether big or small is important to us and gets our full attention. Our commitment to protect the environment and improve crew welfare is firm and we strive for continuous improvement. We are happy to assist Shipowners in their quest to compliance with the oncoming new regulations on Decarbonization, AI, CII, EEXI, EU-ETS, alternative fuels, etc.”
4) What are SeaQuest’s strengths compared to other ship management companies?
“As a small to mid-sized company, we serve a limited number of clients with high degree of quality management and close, transparent communication. We have access to a trained pool of seafarers of East European, Philippines, Indian, Chinese, and other nationalities. Our Top management is directly involved in the management of the vessels and has over 100 years of experience between them.”
“Our performance shows up in our KPI’s which are within control with zero fatalities, zero oil spills in water, zero oil spills onboard, and zero collisions in the last 5 years. Regarding budgets, our performance for overall opex and for docking expenses is down to 5% below budget.”
“Having a presence in Europe and Asia, we are well-placed to cover all time zones. We are flexible in our approach and customer satisfaction with our service is very important for us.”
5) Other comments you would like to make?
SeaQuest ShipManagement (SQSM) philosophy is based on these four pillars :
S – Safety of the crew, Safety of the environment, and Safety of the vessel with its cargo
Q – Quality of seafarers, Quality of shipboard operations, and Quality of services
S – Sustainability – Environmental, Social, Governance
M – Managing manpower, Managing risks, and Managing adversity
We hope to be able to cooperate with the small to medium-sized Japanese Ship owners and are confident that we will prove to be their reliable, trusted partner and we extend our warmest greetings to all members of the maritime community in Japan.
■Profile
Vittorio Portunato, Founder of the company (www.sqships.com)
University of Genoa, Chartered Engineer with an honors degree in Naval Architecture and Mechanical Engineering
11 May 1961