President: MOL Needs a Change of Course

The business performance of Japanese shipping major Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) fell short as the company could not achieve its initial target of ¥70 billion in consolidated ordinary income, MOL’s President Koichi Muto said while speaking on MOL’s Foundation Day.

According to Muto, the highest priority for the company is to swiftly alter the course of the midterm management plan by decisively implementing measures already started in each business division to improve the company’s business performance.

“We went off the course we charted for growth last year. But this year, we must return to that course and proceed, full steam ahead, to make up for lost time. Our goal is within sight, and we must fully execute our action plan and achieve positive results,” Muto stressed.

One of the key targets is to return the company’s containership business  to profitability in FY2015. The containership business could not achieve its targets despite the favorable winds of a depreciating yen and lower bunker prices. Muto attributed this to inaccurate projections regarding the trade environment, freight rate market, and bunker prices, as well as construction delays in MOL’s terminal automation project that led to a significant loss.

The company’s bulkship business has accumulated stable profits by making full use of MOL’s worldwide capabilities to develop businesses in sectors outside the LNG carrier and offshore fields.

In the tanker division, a decline in crude oil prices spurred a sharp upturn in both VLCC and product tanker markets. The division’s business performance improved significantly, breaking into the black after five consecutive fiscal years of losses, which was the only bright spot in the company’s business performance for FY2014, according to Muto.

“Over the course of our 130-year history, thanks to the hard work and dedication of you and our predecessors, our company has grown into a global organization, employing more than 20,000 executives and staff throughout the group. And we will continue to expand on a worldwide scale,” MOL’s President pointed out.

The company marked its 131st anniversary on April first, on which occasion the company introduced “MOL CHART,” which encapsulates the shared values of the company as its charts its course of the future development.

“CHART” stands for five words that express values – “Challenge,” “Honesty,” “Accountability,” “Reliability,” and” Teamwork.”

“Let’s share MOL CHART and use it like a sea chart as we pursue the best course of action, build momentum toward achieving the goals of STEER FOR 2020, and realize our long term vision of making the MOL Group an excellent and resilient organization that leads the world shipping industry,” he concluded.