The Isle of Man registered Supramax bulk carrier Catherine Manx is part of a package of 5 ship purchases announced by Pacific Basin Shipping Ltd. last week. The package include three recently built Supramaxes, one new Supramax to be delivered in 2018 and one recently built handysize.

Built by Tsuneishi Shipbuilding, Zhoushan, PRC, in 2014
Owned and operated by LTU Management, Douglas, Isle of Man, UK
LOA 190m
Beam 32m
GRT 32,360 tons
DWT 57,964 MT
Class NK
Flag: Isle of Man, UK

Privately held Uglands Rederi, headquartered in Grimstad, Norway, was established in 1930 by ship owner Johan Ugland. Following his death in 1960, his sons Johan and Andreas Ugland assumed control and today, his grandson, Knut N.T. Ugland, is the sole owner of the company. The fleet currently comprises 17 bulk carriers, 5 tankers and 2 offshore service vessels supported by business interests in the operation of tugs and barges. Registered owner and manager of Catherine Manx, LTU Management, is a division LT Ugland Shipping based in the Isle of Man.

Situated in the Irish Sea, the Isle of Man is not formally part of the UK but is a self-governing Crown dependency and makes its own laws and sets its own taxes. A full Maritime Convention nation with a Shipping Register that has existed since 1786, the Isle of Man is also a prominent international finance centre and offshore insurance centre with stringent regulatory controls under its own Financial Supervision Commission. The Isle of Man ship register is now the 12^th largest in the world and continues to grow with some 60% of its registered tonnage being under Asian control.

The Isle of Man Steam Packet Company Limited claims to be the oldest continuously operating passenger shipping company in the world, celebrating its 187th anniversary this year. The company provides freight, passenger and vehicle services between Douglas in the Isle of Man and five ports in the UK through its subsidiary Manx Ferries.

Under the ownership of Pacific Basin, Catherine Manx will be renamed Pelican Island.