MOL’S new Russian training scheme

Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) has agreed a deal with Russia’s Admiral Ushakov Maritime State Academy, Novorossiysk, to introduce a seafarer cadet training system.The cadet programme will start this month and consists mainly of onboard practical instruction. MOL will provide 10 to 12 vessels for the training. About 20 students will take onboard training every year, and be hired as MOL officers after graduation.Azalea Maritime, which supervises crew management in Europe, will take responsibility for recruiting and has established a subsidiary in Novorossiysk on the Black Sea in south-western Russia in August 2006. The new company has acquired a license to conduct seafarer employment activities.Establishing seafarer employment and education systems in Russia MOL has recruited and hired crew members and seafarer cadets in Vladivostok and Novorossiysk since 2002.The company says: “MOL and Russia's Maritime State University (MSU) teamed up to open a maritime training centre in Vladivostok, in August 2005. The company started to recruit cadets graduated from the Admiral Ushakov Maritime State Academy in February 2005, and will introduce this [new] programme to ensure stable education and employment of top-quality seafarers.