Leading classification society ClassNK (Chairman and President: Noboru Ueda) has announced the expansion of its Veracruz Office in order to better support the growing offshore oil industry in the Gulf of Mexico. The expansion will increase the survey capabilities and management of the Veracruz office in response to growing demand from the offshore sector in the region.

The liberalization of Mexico’s offshore industry is driving increased interest in Mexico’s growing offshore sector. Over the past year, a number of major vessel operators have increased the size of their fleets in the region to take advantage of new exploration and production opportunities. ClassNK is expanding its operations in the region to support these efforts.

The expansion, which took effect on 1 November 2014, will increase the survey and management authority of the Veracruz Office, while increasing its survey and support capabilities. As part of the expansion, current Veracruz Office Manager Mr. Emilio Reyes Galindo has been promoted to General Manager of the expanded office.

Founded in 2004, ClassNK’s Veracruz Office is one of 11 ClassNK offices in North America, and one of three of the society’s offices that supports vessels in the Gulf of Mexico. While the Veracruz Office has traditionally provided classification and certification services to the ocean going vessels calling at Mexico’s ports, the growing number of NK-classed offshore vessels in the region spurred ClassNK to expand its local operations.

According to ClassNK Chairman & President Noboru Ueda the move reflects recent efforts by the class society to better support the industry: “As we’ve increased our support for the offshore and workboat sectors, our share in those markets has rapidly grown. OSVs and other workboats accounted for nearly 25% of the vessels added to our register in 2013, including a number of Mexican-owned vessels transferred from other classification societies. The expansion of our Veracruz Office not only reflects this growth, but also represents the next step in our efforts to support this vital industry.”

New Veracruz Office General Manager, Mr. Emilio Reyes Galindo agreed with Mr. Ueda, adding: “The expansion of our capabilities here in Veracruz sends an important message about our support for the local maritime and offshore industries and will mean that we can provide an even greater range of classification and ISO-based certification services for industry in the region.”