Nord news

Winter 2006 

NORD NEWS

2 

MV “NORDMOSEL” in stormy 

weather 

off Cape Finisterre. 

The photos were sent in by 

Capt.Jayalath. 

NORD NEWS Winter 2006 

Photo on the left: 

Celebrations onboard 

MV “NORDEMS” 

when the crew celebrated 

“Kiribati Independence Day”. 

The photo was sent in by 

Capt. Nasoordeen. 

Cover Photo: 

MT “NORDMARK” 

“participates” in the “Trieste 

to Barcola” yacht race. 

The photo was sent in by 

Capt. Montgomery.

Dear Seafarers and Readers! 

The days become shorter - leaves are falling in beautiful colours, winter blankets will cover us now for 

the next months. 

It's November - near the end to a year which was full of changes and events - positive and negative. 

Now the season starts where you decorate your home because Christmas is coming slowly but steadily. 

You can see it everywhere in the streets, in the shops and of course in the windows of the houses - 

hopefully a peaceful time for all of us where people like to meet, to cook, to bake Christmas cakes and 

to talk together. 

According to our tradition I will try to review the Reederei "NORD" Klaus E. Oldendorff's year 2006 

which started with the delivery of a new building - another "NORDWOGE", the 3rd one in our 

company’s history. My husband always liked to reuse ship names of those which traded successfully and 

I love to continue these things too, not always but when I feel it's right. 

On the other hand, we sold our four UCC 14's. Good ships, but we try to keep our fleet young and 

those ones we bought 1990/1991. You may remember that we parted with “NORDMAX” in 2004 and 

now its twin brother “NORDMORITZ” found a new owner. On page 12 please find an article about 

the sale and by the way Mr. Nikolaus Oldendorff's most beloved photo which shows the happy 

Oldendorff Family. 

Commercially the freight rates for the container vessels continue to fall, though we are in a good 

position as we had already fixed them for longer periods during better times. The tankers have been 

doing quite nicely too and we are ending on a positive note, especially in this sector. And last but not 

least our Panamax bulkcarriers are presently enjoying unexpected good rates due to the persistent 

demand for raw materials especially in China. 

Looking back at the autumn period in particular, I note it has been quite a busy one, and now we look 

forward to the festive season ahead. As always I have been travelling extensively. 

In this edition you will find a lovely article on how Christmas is celebrated around the world. It is so 

wonderful to read about the different traditions that people from different parts of the world follow. It 

also goes to show that in the end we are not so very different from each other after all! 

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all of us. 

May God bless our fleet, our seafarers and 

the beloved ones who stay home and 

wait patiently for their return. 

End of November 2006 Christiane E. Oldendorff 

NORD NEWS Winter 2006 3

4 

L 

ania, is a charming restored village 

just 20 minutes away from the 

bustling seaside of Limassol, yet a 

world away from modern life. 

Like most of the villages in the south 

sides of Troodos Mountains, Lania originated in 

the feudal times, around 500 to 600 years ago. 

The limestone soil of the area around the 

village is ideal for the cultivation of grapes with a 

very high degree of sugar content. That's what 

seems to have attracted Knights and Monks in 

the 14th Century to built the first habitations. 

Kolossi was the headquarters of a number of 

Estates in the region and produced excellent 

wines. In their search for a suitable area to 

produce even better quality of the 

"Commandaria Wine" they moved from Kolossi 

and the area around Kolossi castle and built the 

first habitations in the Lania area. 

This sweet red wine was produced on the 

Island from the very early days but actually took 

its name from "Grand Commandaria" the 

headquarters of the Kingdom. On a map dating 

back to 1400 AD the area around the village is 

marked as "Nova Lana", clearly connecting the 

village with "Lana" the area around Kolossi Castle. 

Throughout the centuries Commandaria 


Lania ... a “ Tra 

was produced in the seventeen wineries of the 

village. "Linos" is the name of those small family 

owned units and you can still see the last one left, 

situated in the middle of the village. In these 

sophisticated work shops the grapes that were 

dried under the sun - were squashed first and 

then bundled under the double lever and covered 

by heavy, oak presses. Opposite there was a 

round shaped rock with a hole in the middle. 

This rock was lifted up by turning a spindle so 

that the lever is brought down pressing the 

grapes. The grape must flowed in an earthenware 

jar placed on the ground. The production was 

around 200 tons in the 19th century, a huge 

quantity considering the population of the 

village. Commandaria was always a product for 

export and was sold even to France. 

The inhabitants of the village are 

occupied even these days with the cultivation of 

grapes and the existence of this village was always 

connected to the production of wine. 

Today, Lania is a quiet place with one 

hundred or so local residents and almost the 

same number of British ex-patriots who enjoy 

this beautiful place after their retirement. 

Almost all houses have been restored 

with stone and wood blending together in 

harmony. The restoration of old houses started

ditional” Village by George Ktistis 

in the Seventies. A young couple from England 

(a painter and a ballet teacher) bought a house 

and they restored it in such a way that the local 

people could not believe the change. Lania was 

winning the first battle against the destruction of 

its character which was taking place in those 

days. Stone and wood was again respected. 

Michael Owen is still living and painting in his 

studio established in 1973. His Gallery is 

perhaps the oldest in Cyprus. 

Many others followed! The owner of 

"Easy Jet" and Troodos Shipping Mr. Polis 

Hadjioannou restored his grandfather's house. 

He also named one of his Tankers after the village. 

The church, a building of the 16th 

century is dedicated to St Mary. The icon of 

St Mary (which was found buried in the ground 

during the Turkish ruling, among other treasures 

of holy utensils decorated with valuable stones) 

was painted in the 12th century. The church, is 

an exquisite specimen of "Basilica" a rhythm 

which comes from Byzantian times and is built 

from white stone found in the area. The icon 

screen was created in 1676 and the pulpit 

together with the prelatic throne are excellent 

specimens of woodcraft. 

In the place were the icon was found a 

chapel was built and on Easter Monday a mass is 

conducted and 

people from 

all over Cyprus 

attend it. It is 

a kind of duty 

for every single 

person who 

has his/her 

origins from Lania to be there! 

Winding alleys full of flowers, lovely 

stonework, amazing countryside and big oak 

trees have made the village a haven for artists. A 

number of painters choose to live and work in 

Lania. The picture of the surrounding country 

side is changing colours every season. In 

February the almond trees surrounding the 

village begin blossoming and with the dark blue 

back drop of the Troodos Mountains it is a 

spectacular scene! 

Walking around the narrow stone-paved 

roads you feel that you are going back in time 

and you can clearly see how much life has 

changed in the last 30 years in Cyprus. 

If you have the privilege to stay 

for the night at this lovely village, enjoy 

a glass of Commandaria and listen 

to the nightbirds, "perfect harmony" for 

nature lovers!! 


On 16th October 2006, the 

Keel of our next new building S-062 

was laid at Universal Shipbuilding 

Corporation Tsu Shipyard No.1 

(west) Building Dock. 

The ceremony was attended by Managers 

and Representatives of Mitsui, Orient Marine 

Co., Ltd., Lloyds Register Asia, Shipbuilder and 

Reederei “NORD” Klaus E. Oldendorff Ltd. It 

was conducted in a traditional Japanese "Shinto" 

style and language and was a cultural event. 

The service performed by the Japanese 

priest included the calling and "descending of the 

gods", "offerings" to the gods such as fruits 

vegetables and other goods, "reciting prayers", 

"purification", "offering branches" of the sacred 

tree by the various participants and honored 

guests. The ritual was carried out in such a precise 

manner following a formal procedure indicative 

of the Japanese culture and meticulousness. The 

instruction alone of the offering sprigs of sacred 

trees to the gods is impressive. 

After that the welding ceremony was 

carried out. Here technology came in taking its 

toll. The traditional bell is now replaced by a push 

button for an electric bell. Simultaneously the 

weld on the first erection block (a section of the 

Engine Room) has commenced. 

The ritual was closed by the withdrawal of 

the offerings and the ascending of the gods. 

6 


Keel Laying Ceremony 

The Building Schedule for the Vessel 

Steel Cutting 23 May 2006 

Start of sub assembly 30 May 2006 

Keel Laying 16 Oct. 2006 

M/E SHOP TRIAL 18 Oct. 2006 

M/E Installation 2 Nov. 2006 

Sighting of Line shafting 10 Nov. 2006 

Propeller Installation 24 Nov. 2006 

Rudder Installation 29 Nov. 2006 

Launching 15 Dec. 2006 

Mooring Trial 9 Feb. 2007 

Final Docking 14-22 Feb. 2007 

Sea Trial 22-24 Feb. 2007 

Delivery 31 Mar. 2007 

TSU Shipyard - History 

The TSU Shipyard is situated in Tsu City, 

Mie Prefecture, on reclaimed land and covers an area 

of approximately 737,800 m2. The TSU Shipyard 

belongs to the group of Universal Shipbuilding 

Corporation. It was founded in 1969 to meet the 

high demand at that time of VLCC and other 

super-ships. Addressing the negative impact that 

the recession had on Japan's shipbuilding industry 

after the oil crisis of the 1970’s and 1980’s, Tsu 

Shipyard shifted operations to LPG gas carriers and 

multi purpose cargo ships centering operations on 

bulk carriers and offshore structures. With the 

recovery of demand for tankers in the first half of 

the 1990’s, the construction of VLCC’s resumed.

for Newbuilding S-062 

In the last half of the 1990’s, the newly developed 

capesize bulk carrier gained high popularity. 

Orders were also vigorous for the newly developed 

Suezmax and Aframax Tankers. Until today the 

yard continues to build mainly Capesize Bulkers 

and Suezmax and Aframax Tankers. 

Newbuilding S-062 is an upgraded double 

hull design Aframax Tanker. 

The yard has a double door dock 500 x 75 

x 11.8 that allows the construction of one and half 

large ships at the same time and builds about 10 

vessels per year. The yard facilities are laid out in 

the configuration of a large and efficient 

production line. The shipyard combines advanced 

technology with traditional shipbuilding methods 

to meet modern demands. There is an in-house 

Technical Research Center with a model basin and 

is one of the few yards that has its own ice model 

basin. 

S-062 - Main Engine Shop Tests 

The main engine shop tests for S-062 were carried 

out at the engine maker Diesel United Ltd. 

premises at Aioi, Japan on 18th October 2006. 

The DU workshop is at the facilities of the former 

IHI (Ishikawa Harima) premises. Diesel United is 

building 2-stroke engines under license by Wartsila 

and 4-stroke engines under license by Pielstick. 

The main engine for hull S-062, will be a 

seven unit 2-stroke super long stroke diesel engine 

by Symeon Boeros 

type 7 RTA58T, tanker version. The cylinder bore 

is 580mm and the piston stroke 2416mm. This 

well proven Sulzer design engine incorporates 

some of the latest developments of Sulzer engines 

such as the patented "tribopack" with ceramic 

coated piston rings and anti-polishing ring to 

achieve up to 18,000 running hours time between 

overhaul and the latest design of ABB TPL 

turbochargers. 

Shop tests are conducted for purposes such 

as confirming that assemblies are correctly built, 

verifying strength and tightness requirements and 

demonstrating that controls and safety devices are 

functional and properly adjusted. Once these 

operational tests are completed the performance 

characteristics and fuel consumptions are taken to 

confirm that they meet the contracted building 

specification. 

The shop tests of this 14,000 kW (MCR) 

output engine at 103 rpm with normal continuous 

rating at 90% of 12,600 kW at 99.4 rpm and 

mean effective pressure up to 18.3 bar was 

conducted by the maker with precision and completed 

satisfactorily by verifying that it meets the contracted 

specific fuel oil consumption of 168.5 g/kWh. 

The construction of the ship will be 

concluded with a broad array of installation tests and 

the sea trial to be carried out in February 2006 to 

demonstrate that the ship meets the contract 

requirements. 


8 

Irrespective of our religion, one cannot ignore 

the celebration of Christmas all over the 

world. Christmas decorations everywhere, 

the buildings dressed in bright lights, the 

shopping centres swarming with people busily 

buying gifts for their loved ones and Christmas 

carols filling the air. 

The most prominent figure of the festive 

season is undoubtedly "Father Christmas" or 

"Santa Claus". The adorable old man with the 

long white beard, red coat and a large sack of toys 

brings presents to the children the night before 

Christmas (or in some countries on December 6th, 

St. Nicholas day). It is said that he lives near the 

North Pole and flies in on a sledge pulled by 

reindeers, spreading joy to everyone with his 

presents. Father Christmas is based on a real 

person, St. Nicholas, which comes from the Dutch 

"Sinterklaas" who lived in the 4th century AD. 

Nicholas, a Christian leader from Myra (modern 

day Turkey) wanted to give money to poor people 

without them knowing about it since he was very 

shy. One day, he climbed the roof of a house and 

dropped a purse of money down the chimney. It 

landed in a stocking (which the girl of the house 

had put to dry by the fire) hence the belief that 

Father Christmas comes down the chimney and 

places gifts in the children's stockings. His place 

of "Residence" is disputed between the Finnish 

people who believe he lives in the north part of 

Finland called Korvatunturi (north of the Arctic 

Circle) and the people from Greenland who say 

that he lives there. 

United Kingdom is the home of Christmas 

cards and Boxing Day celebrations. The Boxing 

Day tradition started about 800 years ago in the 


Christmas aro 

Middle Ages. The churches would open their 

"alms boxe" (boxes in which people would place 

gifts and money for the needy). The boxes were 

opened on the day after Christmas and the 

contents were distributed to the poor people in the 

neighbourhood. Another custom originating in 

Britain is the sending of Christmas cards. It dates 

back to the 1840's when the first "Penny Post" 

started and mail deliveries helped by the new 

railway system revolutionized communication in 

the 19th century. Nowadays the British postal 

services handle over 100 million cards a day during 

the Christmas season. Families celebrate 

Christmas together with the decoration of the 

Christmas tree being a major family occasion. The 

Christmas Tree tradition was first brought to the 

UK by Prince Albert, the husband of Queen 

Victoria, in 1841. Prince Albert was of German 

origin and he thought it would be good to use his 

customs when celebrating Christmas in England. 

Children write the letters to Father Christmas with 

their requests for presents and they leave mince pies 

and brandy out for him so he can eat when he visits 

them. The letters are posted or they are tossed in 

the fireplace. The draught carries the letters up the 

chimney and Father Christmas reads the smoke. 

The main Christmas meal is traditionally roast 

goose or roast turkey with stuffing and roast 

vegetables and dessert is often Christmas Pudding, 

mince pies and loads of chocolates. A cracker for 

each person is always placed at the table amidst the 

flowers and the candles. 

In Denmark, folklore legends talk of pixies 

("Nisser" in Danish). These fairy tale creatures are 

about 30cm tall and sometimes can be over 800 

years old in age, living in the barn of farms or in 

caves by the woods. People and pixies live together

und the world 

in harmony, but if the house owner offends the 

pixie living in his property, a lot of bad things can 

happen to him. His cattle can die of a disease, his 

crops may be destroyed etc. It is therefore very 

important to keep the pixie happy and at 

Christmas time they leave bowls of rice pudding 

with wooden spoons (since pixies hate metal) for 

pixies to eat. Apart from keeping the pixies 

content, during Christmas people in Denmark also 

celebrate by exchanging gifts, having their main 

Christmas meal on Christmas Eve, sometimes even 

dancing around the Christmas tree before 

opening their gifts. 

In France, they burn Yule logs made out of 

cherry wood and sprinkled with red wine to make 

the log smell nice when is burning. The log and 

candles are left burning all night on Christmas Eve, 

with some food and drinks laid on the table in case 

Mary and baby Jesus come past during the night. 

The main Christmas meal, called "Réveillon" takes 

place after everyone has returned from the 

midnight church service on Christmas Eve. A 

chocolate yule log is eaten for dessert. A very 

delicious celebration is still observed where 13 

different types of desserts made from different 

types of fruit, nuts and pastries are also consumed. 

Germany is of course the home of 

Christmas markets and Advents. The Christmas 

markets date back to the late medieval period with 

the first mention of the "Dresdner Streizelmarkt" 

in 1434. Beautiful handcrafted ornaments and 

sweets are sold at the markets and the smell of 

spices, cinnamon and Glühwein fill the air. A big 

part of the celebrations in Germany is also the 

Advent. Different types of Advent calendars are 

used in the German homes. There are the ones 

made out of wreath of fir tree branches with 24 

decorated boxes hanging from it, with each box 

containing a little present. Another type is called 

"Advent Kranz". It is a ring of fir branches 

containing four candles and at the beginning of 

each week of Advent one candle is lit. Father 

Christmas (der Weihnachtsmann) brings the 

presents on December 24. However, on January 6, 

"der Nikolaus" also brings some small gifts for the 

children such as chocolates and sweets. He comes 

on the eve of January 6 and leaves presents in the 

shoes of the children. He is clothed in rugs and 

carries a birch which he gives as a present to 

children who have been bad. 

Have you ever wondered where the custom 

of decorating a Christmas tree started? Look no 

further than Riga, Latvia. Going back to 1510! the 

first ever Christmas tree was decorated outside the 

"House of Blackheads" in the Town Hall Square, 

situated just meters away from the majestic 

Daugava River. In front of this building a plaque 

is still visible marking the site of the first Christmas 

tree, engraved with the sentence "The first New 

Year's Tree in Riga in 1510" in eight languages. 

Another legend states that, Martin Luther when 

walking through a Riga forest was touched by the 

beauty of the moonlight shimmering on the 

branches of a fir tree. So he chopped it and took 

it home for his children and decorated it with 

candles to recreate the moonlight. 

The Christmas Season is above all one of 

rebirth, hope and sharing with our fellow human 

beings. Regardless of how it is celebrated, whether 

on land or at sea, its true meaning should not be 

forgotten. 

Merry Christmas to you all! 


10 

Recently my mother came home 

from work and brought me a book 

as a small present: "I have a 

friend who is a Captain" she 

said. I know she is working as a 

secretary in a shipping company and I had 

already visited the blue house directly on the 

harbour in Hamburg where the office is 

located. For a moment I wondered if the 

office has maybe moved to a ship, but she 

would have told me before. That night as she 

read this book as a good bedtime story, I 

dreamt of ferries, tug boats, container ships, 

seagulls and messages in bottles. 

A few days later my mom gave me another 

surprise, and I tell you what, mothers are 

good in surprises. She said, Emilia, on 

Sunday afternoon Reederei "NORD" 

Klaus E. Oldendorff gives us the marvellous 

opportunity to visit a big container vessel 

called MV "NORDWOGE". Wow! Me on a 

big ship and I did not know before, that time 

can be so long until Sunday came around. We 

took our car to go to the Tollerort-Terminal in 

Hamburg, Freeport area, a 30 minute drive 

from our house. It was a wonderful sunny day, 

cloudless blue sky and about 26° degrees, 

really unusual for mid September in 

the northern part of Germany, but just 

right for welcoming MV "NORDWOGE". 

At the parking place we met with 

Mrs. Mühlenbruch, my mother's colleague from 

the office, we rang for the shuttle-bus, and all 

three of us were now on our way to the ship. 

After climbing up the stairs, they called them 

a gangway, our names were checked by a 

security watchman and then we were met by 

the Second Officer, who brought us to the 

Officers' recreation room. I really liked that 

room, nice bright furniture, a blue coloured 

lounge on the one side, a table and chairs on 

the other side and even a fleecy carpet. Just as 

I was thinking to switch on the TV opposite 


My visit to MV 

to me, the Captain walked in! He heartily 

welcomed us on board the ship and I was so 

Life at sea! Sure is exciting! 

On the ship’s bridge with mum....

“NORDWOGE” 

by Miss Emilia Alizadeh-Pournaki, Mrs. Britta Mehrens’ Daughter 

excited - compared to the Captain in my book - 

he was really an impressive presence. While I was 

....a lovely view of the Hamburg harbour from the ship’s bridge 

....what’s on the menu? 

figuring out if he is Captain "NORD" my 

mother told me that his name is Capt. Galhena 

and he is the boss of the whole staff on the 

vessel. Good to know and better behave on 

board! We spoke to the Captain for a little 

while and he showed us around the ship. Then 

we took the elevator up to the bridge and 

Capt. Galhena explained his workplace. 

Afterwards we went out to a kind of balcony, 

took some photos and enjoyed the fabulous 

view towards Hamburg-Harbour and the 

famous fish market. Of course I counter 

checked everything with my book and 

Capt. Galhena was so kind and helped me with 

that. He indicated tug boats to me, showed me 

the harbour ferries that tourists take for 

sightseeing trips and ended all his explanations 

with an invitation to a coffee-break in his cabin 

which I really appreciated. After all these new 

impressions orange juice and cookies were just 

fine with me and I was ready for the second 

part of the tour. Capt. Galhena brought us to 

different rooms on different floors, the 

hospital, the Ship's office and the engine room 

etc. To be honest this was too much for me, too 

loud and I did not let my mother go there, I did 

not want her to suffer from earaches. Finally we 

went to the galley (it is what they call the kitchen 

onboard), which I liked the most. When I grow 

up cooking will be my passion. My mum already 

allows me to help her in the kitchen, but for the 

moment only doing the dishes. 

Anyway, having seen almost the whole ship we 

returned to the Captain's cabin where different 

kinds of sandwiches with tuna, cheese and 

sausages were served. How delicious! I decided 

to have two of them before going home and I 

really enjoyed my supper on the vessel. 

Thank you Reederei "NORD" Klaus E. Oldendorff 

and thank you Captain Galhena for the amazing 

time on board and hopefully I may visit one of 

the ships again. And of course, thank you lovely 

mum for driving me there! 


12 

Goodbye “NORDMORITZ” 

by Mrs. Britta Mehrens 

At her christening... 

Mrs. Christiane E. Oldendorff, 

Late Mr. Klaus E. Oldendorff 

with Mr. Nikolaus E. M. Oldendorff and 

Mr. Christian B. M. Oldendorff 

After being in service for 11 years 

MV "NORDMORITZ" was sold and 

handed over to greek buyers in La 

Coruna, Spain on September 12th, 

2006. Her sister vessel "NORDMAX" had 

already been sold two years ago, also to Greeks. 

You may remember that the two ships have been 

named after Mr. Christian Burchard Max 

Oldendorff and Mr. Nikolaus Egon Moritz 

Oldendorff. Here you find a christening photo of 

those days. 

Built at DAEWOO Heavy Industries Ltd. 

"NORDMORITZ" was completed and 

delivered on February 24th, 1995. The first sea 

trials were conducted on February 14th & 15th, 

1995, on the coast of Koje Island, South Korea. 

At that time the vessel was managed by our 

Limassol Office and the first Superintendent 

was Mr. Symeon Boeros. Since 2004 

MV "NORDMORITZ" was managed 

by the "NORD" office in Hamburg, by 

the Superintendents Mr. Milan Smrcek and 

Mr. Grzegorz Kowalczyk who were in charge 

and took care of the vessel. 

The ship has had throughout her life uneventful 

voyages and performed very well to the entire 

satisfaction of the owner. This could not have 

been achieved without the various good crews 


who were on board over the years. Also the 

present crew of course contributed to the success 

and therefore Mrs. Oldendorff invited them to a 

nice farewell party to show her appreciation and 

thanks. 

The crew decided to have a BBQ-Party which 

was held on September 8th, 2006 in Spain at La 

Coruna anchorage and enjoyed by all 

crewmembers. To commemorate this event the 

crew sent over some photos which were taken on 

that evening and we also received wonderful, 

unique presents from the Tuvalu Islands: 

handmade shell medallions. What a nice 

surprise! We really appreciate them thinking of 

us here in Hamburg. Therefore, this article ends 

with a wish that we would like all of you to share 

these special moments. 

Shell medallions from Tuvalu Islands 

Farewell from her last crew

STOP PRESS!! ... “NORDMARK” FEATURES ON LOCAL TV 

WHILST AT ANCHOR OFF TRIESTE..... 

At 09:45 hours on October 8, 2006 we anchored off Trieste and sighted a large fleet of yachts lined up for 

a race which commenced at 10:00 hours. Within two hours we found ourselves in the thick of 1,300 

yachts participating in the annual “Trieste to Barcola" yacht race with the “NORDMARK” being 

generously covered by several different television camera angles. This caused our crew to clap and cheer 

each time we appeared on TV. 

Our anchor position was allocated by the harbour master on approach to Trieste, but we later 

discovered, much to our delight that this 

position was to leave us beam on to the lay line 

of the second leg of the race. Subsequently, the 

fleet was required to tag and manouver around 

our stern and bow, sometimes at rather close 

quarters. For some yachts the presence of a large 

grey tanker in the way was cause for much 

merriment and laughter, with folk waving and 

cheering as they sailed past. The panoramic 

vision of the yacht fleet surrounding the ship 

was amazing. 

P.S. the maxi yacht “Alfa Romeo” won the day...! 

News from our ships 

“MINI” ....“NORDMARS” 

Mr Alfonso Catura age 31, is married and has a 

daughter, Angela. He lives in Asingan, Pangasinan, 

Philippines. He joined the “NORDMARS” as a Wiper 

on March 27, 2005 and commenced construction on his 

model of “NORDMARS” on June 16th. He completed 

construction on October 31st, some four and a half 

months after he started. The attention to detail is 

meticulous and exceptionally accurate given that he took 

all his measurements from the ship's drawings on the 

bulkheads. 

He first started making ship models in 1996 using 

cardboard from safety shoe boxes. As his talents 

developed he learned to scavenge for better suited 

materials from onboard scrap. His model of 

“NORDMARS” is made from pallet timber, aluminium 

cans, bits of plastic and steel wire. It really is a work of 

art and his skill was recognized by presenting him with a 

“NORD” Shirt and hopefully a place in NORD NEWS. 

When asked what his next project would be, he replied 

… "probably my next ship!" 

Here is to greater ship models for Mr. Catura, and 

many thanks to Capt. Montgomery for sending both 

stories and photos in to us. 


New Business Relationship in Myanmar! Left to right 

Mr. Sergey Parkhomenko and Capt. Ivelin Ivanov, 

of Reederei “NORD” Klaus E. Oldendorff Ltd. with 

Mr. Thaung Kyaing, Director SECD, Mr. Lay Nu & 

Mr. Win Naing of Pisces Maritime Services Co. Ltd. 

Catch of the day.. the crew of MT “NORDMARK” 

14 NORD NEWS Winter 2006 

Photo Gallery 

“Zero” Deficiencies......... 

MV “NORDEMS” successfully passed the ISM and 

ISPS Renewal Audit in UK 

with Zero! deficiencies. Well Done! 

Left to right: D/C Wickrama, C/E Svetiev, 

C/O Marin, Capt. Nasoordeen, GL Surveyor 

Peter Cross, 2/O Bongi and 3/O Maricic. 

Pictured here, our own “NORD” Santas 

during their “Immersion Suit Training Day” 

on board MT “NORDMARK” 

“Happy Crew” MT “NORDMILLENNIUM” 

“We are the Champions!” The crew of MT “NORDPOWER” during Basketball & Table Tennis 

Tournaments held on board during one of the long voyages around the Cape of 

Good Hope. Thank you to Capt. Monteiro, for sending in the photos.

Congratulations to our sea staff 

Capt. Andrei Hudzasvili, Senior Marine Superintendent of Reederei “NORD” Klaus E. Oldendorff Ltd. 

(featured in the photos below) has been busy delivering commemorative watches to 

our Sea Staff who completed five years of service with our company. 

We wish them all best of luck for the years to come. 

The photos below were taken onboard MT “NORDMILLENNIUM” and MT “NORDSTRENGTH” 

AB Juan Malana 

Congratulations to Mr. Malana on completing five years of 

service with Reederei “NORD”. Mr. Malana hails from 

the Philippines and started with Reederei “NORD” in 

March 1999. He sailed on “NORDLIGHT”, “NORDBAY”, 

“NORDMILLENNIUM”, “NORDOCEAN” and 

“NORDPOWER”. 

Cook Johnny Policarpio 

Mr. Policarpio recently completed five years of service with 

Reederei “NORD”. Hailing from the Philippines, he 

started his sea career in March 1999, as a messman 

onboard the “NORDLIGHT”. He also sailed on 

“NORDBAY” before being promoted to a Cook in 

January 2003. He has also sailed on “NORDPOWER” 

and “NORDSTRENGTH”. Pictured here on the right is 

Capt. Modzelewski. 

C/E Bogdan Michalak 

Hailing from Poland, Mr. Michalak started his career with 

Reederei “NORD” as a Second Engineer in October 1998, 

onboard MT “NORDMARK”. He was promoted to 

Chief Engineer in June 1999 and sailed on several of 

our Tankers ie. “NORDISLE”, “NORDOCEAN”, 

“NORDMARK”, “NORDMILLENNIUM”, “NORDGULF”, 

“NORDPOWER” and “NORDNEPTUN”. 

Oiler Loreto Tabayan 

Also from the Philippines is Mr. Tabayan, who started his 

seagoing career with Reederei “NORD” in 1999 as a wiper 

onboard the “NORDISLE”. He was promoted to Oiler in 

November 2000 and sailed on “NORDISLE”, 

“NORDGULF”, “NORDBAY”, “NORDMARS” 

and “NORDSTRENGTH”. Pictured on right is 

Capt. Modzelewski. 


16 

Mr. Edward Dziebowski, Technical Superintendent of Reederei 

“NORD” Klaus E. Oldendorff Ltd., has also been busy 

delivering five year watches to our seastaff, this time onboard 

MT “NORDPOWER”. 

2/E Yuriy Golgofskiy 

Congratulations to Mr. Golgofskiy on completing 5 years of 

service with Reederie “NORD”. He commenced his career 

onboard MT “NORDSTRENGTH” in July 1999, as an Oiler. 

He progressed through the ranks of Fourth and Third Engineer 

and sailed on various “NORD” vessels until his promotion to 

2/E in September 2005. He has since then sailed on 

“NORDVENUS”, “NORDMERKUR” and “NORDPOWER”. 

A/B Adolfo Arbollente 

...Congratulations also to Mr. Arbollente, for his five years of 

service with Reederei “NORD”. He started his career in January 

Left to right Mr. Edward Dziebowski 

Technical Superintendent of 

Reederei “NORD” Klaus E. Oldendorff Ltd., 

Mr. Adolfo Arbollente, 

Mr. Yuiry Golgofskiy and 

Capt. Brendon Monteiro 

1999 and sailed as an O/S onboard MT “NORDBAY” and MT “NORDGULF”. In December 2000 he was 

promoted to AB and sailed on “NORDISLE”, “NORDENERGY”, “NORDMARS” and “NORDPOWER”. 


More seastaff anniversaries 

Another five year watch goes to....... 

2/O Madawala Navaratne 

Mr. Navaratne comes from Sri Lanka. He started his career with Reederei 

“NORD” as a Deck Cadet in December 1996, onboard “NORDBEACH”. He 

also sailed on “NORDKAP” and then he was promoted to Third Officer in 

November 11, 2000. As a Third Officer he sailed on “NORDRIVER” and 

“NORDLAKE”. Mr. Navaratne was promoted to Second Officer in November 

2004 and sailed on “NORDCLIFF”, “NORDPOL” and “NORDWELLE”. He 

is pictured here receiving his five year anniversary watch from 

Mr. Symeon Boeros, Senior Technical Superintendent/Project Manager of 

Reederei “NORD” Klaus E. Oldendorff Ltd. 

Welcome to new staff... 

Reederei “NORD” Klaus E. Oldendorff Limited 

Mr. Erwin Derlagen, Technical Manager 

My seagoing career started in June 1983, as an apprentice 

engineer and I left the sea as a Chief Engineer almost 10 

years later. 

From then on I worked as a Technical Manager with a repair 

company in Brazil for 4 years. Then I joined a shipowning 

company firstly as a Superintendent working from Brazil for 

one year and afterwards I joined their offices in Cyprus. 

I have been married for 16 years with Debora and we have 

one daughter Aline, who will be 12 years old soon. 

I joined Reederei “NORD” Klaus E. Oldendorff Ltd. on September 1, 2006 and I am looking forward 

to working with all my new colleagues and consider it an honour to be part of such an established and 

respected shipping company like Reederei “NORD”.

Reederei “NORD” Klaus E. Oldendorff GmbH 

Twenty Five Year Jubilee - Mrs. Ursula Gehrke 

On Friday, September 1, 2006 I completed twenty five 

years in the accounts department of Reederei "NORD" 

Klaus E. Oldendorff GmbH. Twenty five years is quite a long time, 

but looking back, I must say they were very good years, during which 

there have been quite a lot of changes, not only in the location of our 

office, but also the many colleagues who have come and gone over the 

years. Of course, as you all know, the fleet has also grown quite considerably 

in that time, and in the course of this expansion there were often 

Mrs. Gehrke, pictured here with 

opportunities to travel to various places for the christening of a new vessel. 

Mr. Krause, Director of Reederei 

One occasion I will always remember was in 1994 when the 

“NORD” Klaus E. Oldendorff GmbH MV "NORDLAKE" was delivered to the fleet. We all flew to Poland for this 

event, and even had time for a sightseeing tour, that was a very enjoyable trip. 

Another memory which will always remain with me was in 1989 when we, (along with husbands and 

wives), were invited to Cyprus to celebrate the 25th anniversary of our company. For this special celebration we 

had an extended weekend during which we had a Dinner Dance and a sightseeing tour of the Island. 

Then came the 30th anniversary celebration in 1994, which was also held in Cyprus, this time we 

celebrated in Villa Nord, the Oldendorff's private home with its magnificent view of the sea, and of course 

husbands and wives were again invited to take part. 

The next big anniversary celebration was the 40th in early December 2004 which was held in Vienna 

and which many of you attended, and I'm sure you all remember well what a great weekend that was, beginning 

with meeting our colleagues from Limassol on the Thursday evening, and then the various activities, such as the 

musical "Elisabeth" on Friday evening, then the sightseeing tour of the city including the visit to the magnificent 

castle Schönbrunn on Saturday, and of course the evening meal and the dance where we all had the opportunity 

to prove how well we could waltz. 

As you can imagine, there were many more exciting events, too numerous to mention, in which I took 

part during the past twenty five years, but of course, as is always the case, there were also some sad moments, 

the saddest of all being that we had to bid farewell to Mr. Klaus E. Oldendorff three years ago. 

I have always enjoyed working here at Reederei "NORD" Klaus E. Oldendorff GmbH, and was very 

pleased on the evening of September 1st, when Mrs. Oldendorff invited all my colleagues and myself to a gettogether 

in my honour, at which I was presented with a beautiful bouquet of flowers and a gorgeous gold bracelet 

with the “NORD” flag. Then came an extra present from my colleagues of a gift- token for the theatre. I was 

really thrilled about all the lovely presents. 

It was a very nice and enjoyable evening, and they were very memorable twenty five years. 

Welcome to Mr. Andre Jaeger 

Mr. Andre Jaeger joined Reederei "NORD" Klaus E. Oldendorff GmbH on 

August 15, 2006 as IT-Administrator. 

After finishing school in 1995 he started a 3 and a half years training 

to become an "Information Electronic Engineer" and had been working for 

different IT-companies during the last years. Now Mr. Jaeger is in charge of 

the computer and communication system in our Hamburg office and will 

also assist our fleet with IT-needs. 

Mr. Jaeger was born on December 3, 1977 in Hamburg and is still 

living here together with his girlfriend. In their free time, they both like to 

practise different kinds of sports together to recover from a busy week. 

Although Mr. Jaeger is still employed by an IT Company from which 

we “leased” him on a part time basis, he is considered a “NORD”-Man. 


18 

Reederei “NORD” Klaus E. Oldendorff Limited 

Congratulations to Mr. Sergey Parkhomenko on his promotion..... 

I was born in the 

small town of 

Navlia in the 

west of Russia. 

My parents were 

school teachers 

and the sea 

was almost 1000 

kilometers from 

home, so I guess it 

was quite natural 

that I eventually 

decided to become a seafarer! 

In fact even after I saw the sea for the first 

time in my life, at the age of fourteen, seafaring did 

not become a part of my dreams. However it was at 

that age that my plans about what I wanted to do in 

the future started shaping up. First of all, after 

spending school holidays at my sister's, who was a 

medical student in St. Petersburg, which was still 

Leningrad at that time, I decided that this was the 

city where I will continue my education after high 

school. At the same time, I met a close friend of my 

parents, who was an ex navigating officer and a 

lecturer at Leningrad Marine College. It was he who 

first planted in my mind the idea that plying the 

high seas, visiting exotic places and being paid quite 

good money is what a young man should consider 

doing. At fifteen I knew that I would become a 

seafarer. 

In 1984 I successfully passed entry exams to 

Admiral Makarov State's Maritime Academy in 

Leningrad and my seafaring career started. Next few 

years that I spent studying in Leningrad / 

St. Petersburg were unforgettable! I have some of 

my best memories about this city and still consider 

it my second home. 

I graduated in February 1992 and in June 

1992 I joined my first vessel as Third Officer. This 

was the MV "NORDSKY". 

My road to Reederei “NORD” however 

started 2 years earlier in the summer of 1990, 

during my shipboard training on board the 

Academy's training vessel MV "Professor 

Khlyustin". This was the first time I went outside 

Russia. After loading sown timber in Hudiksval, 

Sweden, our ship came straight to Limassol. When 

I stepped ashore in Limassol port and went for a 

swim on Lady's Mile beach, I could not imagine 


that I will return here 5 years later, already for good. 

After Limassol the ship went to Bremen, where, as 

the part of a students exchange program, we had 

some classes at Bremen High Nautical School. 

Among the training materials picked up at the 

School I found a brochure with addresses of 

German shipowners and shipmanagers, that I 

decided to try to make use of. Upon return to 

St. Petersburg I wrote a letter, offering my services 

in the capacity of cadet / apprentice during the 

period of my last, pre-diploma shipboard training 

in the summer of 1991. I sent this letter out to at 

least 10 companies. Reederei “NORD” was the 

only company, which gave me a positive reply and 

offered me to join their vessel as AB (the Company's 

cadet training program started only the following 

year in 1992). I grabbed this opportunity and this 

was July 13, 1991, when I joined the 

MV “NORDHOLM”. This is how my career with 

Reederei “NORD” started. 

On completion of my education and 

obtaining a Watch-Keeping Officer’s licence I sailed 

as 3/O on "NORDSKY" and "NORDWELLE". 

Then I joined "NORDPARTNER" as 2/O. After 

this contract I obtained C/O's licence and in March 

1995 joined another one of the Company's 

newbuildings, MV "NORDCLOUD", again as 

2/O. While on board this vessel, I was offered to join 

Personnel department in the Limassol office and on 20 

March 1995, I became Personnel Officer. I was 

promoted to Assistant Personnel Manager in July 1998. 

I keep excellent memories about my times 

on board the Reederei “NORD” vessels. I had the 

good fortune to sail with a number of very good 

people, real professionals, who taught me a lot, gave 

me great support and were excellent shipmates. I am 

glad to see that quite a few of these people are still 

with “NORD” and I wish them well. I am also 

thankful for the privilege to meet and work with late 

Mr Klaus E. Oldendorff, whom I consider one of the 

greatest professionals, the shipping business ever had. 

On the personal side, I live in Limassol with 

my wife Svetlana and my 13 year old son, Artur, 

who, like myself, feel themselves at home in 

Cyprus. 

I look forward to the challenges, which my 

new position of Personnel Manager will certainly 

offer, and to many more happy years with Reederei 

“NORD” Klaus E. Oldendorff.

Congratulations and Best Wishes for the future ..... 

Mrs. Androulla Heraclides and 

Mr. Tasos Ioannou, 

the happy couple departing from church... 

Our IT Manager Mr. Sergiy Nastachenko, 

proudly holding his daughter Alina and 

his newly arrived son Nikita. 

Nikita was born on 

October 18, 2006. 

In the centre the happy couple, 

Mr. Gavriel Nicolaou and 

Mrs. Georgia Frida. 

The Maid of Honour is Miss Maria Kallinikou. 

NORD NEWS 

Reederei “NORD” 

Klaus E. Oldendorff Limited 

Libra Tower, 23 Olympion Street 

P.O. Box 56345 

3306 Limassol - Cyprus 

Tel: +357 25 841400 

Fax: +357 25 345077 

Tlx: 5938 RNKEO CY 

E-mail: mail@rnkeo.com.cy 

Website: www.rnkeo.com 

NORD NEWS is the Company Magazine of 

Reederei “NORD” 

Klaus E. Oldendorff Limited 

While NORD NEWS is primarily 

directed at our seastaff, 

it is also sent to 

our close business associates. 


19

REEDEREI “NORD” KLAUS E. OLDENDORFF 

 

PRESENT FLEET AND NEWBUILDINGS ON ORDER 

M.T. “NORDPOWER” 319.000 tdw Tanker 2003 

M.T. “NORDENERGY” 319.000 tdw Tanker 2003 

M.T. “NORDMILLENNIUM” 301.500 tdw Tanker 2000 

M.T. “NORDMARK” 105.000 tdw Tanker 1998 

M.T. “NORDSTRENGTH” 105.000 tdw Tanker 1998 

M.T. “NORDVENUS” 75.000 tdw Product Tanker 2004 

M.T. “NORDMARS” 

M.T. “NORDNEPTUN” 

M.T. “NORDMERKUR” 

M.V. “NORDELBE” 

M.V. “NORDWESER” 

M.V. “NORDEMS” 

M.V. “NORDTRAVE” 

75.000 tdw 

75.000 tdw 

75.000 tdw 

75.000 tdw 

75.000 tdw 

75.000 tdw 

75.000 tdw 

Product Tanker 



Panamax bulker 




2004 

2004 

2004 

2001 

2001 

2001 

2001 

 

M.V. “NORDRHINE” 

M.V. “NORDMOSEL” 

M.V. “NORDWELLE” 

M.V. “NORDWOGE” 

M.V. “NORDATLANTIC” 

M.V. “NORDPACIFIC” 

M.V. “NORDBALTIC” 

M.V. “NORDMED” 

75.000 tdw 

75.000 tdw 

34.000 tdw 

34.000 tdw 

33.850 tdw 

33.850 tdw 

33.850 tdw 

33.850 tdw 



2600 TEU 

2600 TEU 

2478 TEU 

2478 TEU 

2478 TEU 

2478 TEU 

2001 

2001 

2005 

2006 

2003 

2003 

2003 

2003 

M.V. “NORDSTRAND” 34.062 tdw 2280 TEU 1993 

M.V. “NORDEAGLE” 27.000 tdw 2105 TEU 1997 

M.V. “NORDFALCON” 27.000 tdw 2105 TEU 1997 

M.V. “NORDHAWK” 27.000 tdw 2105 TEU 1997 

M.V. “NORDSTAR” 22.878 tdw 1730 TEU 1998 

M.V. “NORDSEA” 22.420 tdw 1684 TEU 1996 

M.V. “NORDCLOUD” 22.420 tdw 1684 TEU 1997 

M.V. “NORDRIVER” 22.420 tdw 1684 TEU 1997 

M.V. “NORDCOAST” 22.420 tdw 1684 TEU 1997 

M.V. “NORDLAKE” 22.450 tdw 1524 TEU 1994 

M.V. “NORDPOL” 20.275 tdw 1354 TEU 1994 

M.V. “NORDPARTNER” 20.275 tdw 1354 TEU 1994 

 

 

NEWBUILDING S062 116.000 tdw Tanker 3/2007 

NEWBUILDING S1209 45.000 tdw 3500 TEU 7/2007 

NEWBUILDING S1210 45.000 tdw 3500 TEU 7/2007 

NEWBUILDING S1217 

NEWBUILDING S1218 

45.000 tdw 

45.000 tdw 

3500 TEU 

3500 TEU 

4/2008 

7/2008

Nord news

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