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February 11, 2025 | 12:00am
Japan’s Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd. (MOL) has expressed its intention to strengthen its business in the Philippines, specifically its shipping and non-shipping businesses and its 60-year collaboration with the Magsaysay Group that involves joint ventures in crew manning services, seafarers training, cadet education, ship management, logistics and freight forwarding, and recruitment of workforce for Japan.
Additionally, MOL officials also expressed interest in supporting government efforts to continue with offshore wind development, primarily through shipping and transporting the materials for such projects.
MOL, which is headquartered in Tokyo, is a leading shipping company with the world’s second-largest fleet of about 900 vessels and the largest LNG fleet globally. It is developing various social infrastructure businesses, technologies and services centered on marine transport.
In a press briefing, MOL chief country representative for the Philippines Yasunori Takamatsu, who is also the president of MOL Enterprise (Philippines) Inc., acknowledged that “the Philippines is a very important stakeholder for the MOL Group, both in terms of business and ship operations.”
In response, Magsaysay Shipping & Logistics president and chief executive officer Jesse Ho Maxwell expressed hopes to further strengthen the partnership that has existed since 1964.
He pointed out that the majority of the seafarers serving aboard MOL-operated vessels are Filipinos and provide the foundation for the safe and reliable operation of the MOL Group fleet. It was revealed that Filipino seafarers account for the majority or 65 percent of the MOL Group fleet, with the 35 percent composed of European, Indian and Indonesian seafarers.The preference for Filipinos stems from our ability to get along well with other nationalities.
MOL has approximately 6,000 Filipino seafarers and 400 office staff. Together with the Magsaysay Group, MOL also provides a recruitment service for Filipinos seeking job opportunities in Japan, which includes crews for cruise ships.
Aside from providing Filipino seafarers for MOL-owned vessels, the company also operates many chartered ships, bringing the total number of Filipino crew members to over 20,000.
Because of the Filipino’s balanced and flexible temperament, the MOL Group – in partnership with the Magsaysay Group, operates the MOL Magsaysay Maritime Academy (MMMA), which opened in August 2018 in Dasmariñas, Cavite. It is a merchant marine school that trains new Filipino seafarers and also has training centers for seafarers seeking to upgrade their qualifications.
The MMMA offers high school graduates an opportunity to pursue a maritime degree in marine and engineering. It was also interesting to learn that the academy now accepts female seafarers. It accepts up to 300 students per school year, with 150 each taking up navigation and 150 studying engineering.
The MMMA is set to graduate 280 students on Feb. 18. The graduating students will then take up further on-the- job training aboard MSL vessels for one year, although the MOL and MSL officials admitted that not all complete the OJT as some immediately opt to start working.
It was also acknowledged that a crucial factor for seafarers is the need to provide them with communication facilities to regularly get in touch with their families as loneliness is a key factor that affects the mental well-being of ship crew members who stay out at sea for months on end.
MOL has actually been in the Philippines for 100 years. In 1928, OSK Line, one of MOL’s predecessors, began its Philippine service, which was from Japan-Taiwan and the Philippines, transporting both passengers and cargo. OSK Line’s first branch was located along Escolta Street in Manila.
MOL continues to serve the needs of Philippine trade with shipping and logistics services that include container services, car carrier services, bulk carrier services, tanker services and international logistics services.
Moving forward, MOL hopes to support the shipping needs of the Philippines for the growing demand for LNG (liquified natural gas) and in the development of offshore wind development projects.
School for artisan carpenters
While Jesse Maxwell is the president and CEO of MSL and his family has long been in the shipping industry, he is also interested in helping the local carpentry sector.
Maxwell is married to Jessica Kienle of the well-known upscale furniture maker Philux. Jessica Kienle-Maxwell is Philux’s head designer and helps run the family-owned business, along with her equally well-known sister Stephanie Kienle-Gonzalez, who is married to International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) executive vice president Christian Gonzalez. Steph Kienle-Gonzalez is the managing director of Philux.
In a separate interview, Maxwell expressed interest in possibly putting up an educational training facility sometime in the future, similar to the MMMA, but this time would train and nurture Filipino carpenters and wood artisans who are aging and whose craft is slowly disappearing.
Maxwell lamented the loss of artisan carpentry skills among younger Filipinos and expressed the desire to help nurture and preserve what is now a dying skill. He admits though that if his plan does materialize to put up such a training facility, it would be on a smaller scale and may only accommodate up to 75 students.
