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Belgium: House flags of shipping companies

Sailing again under the Belgian flag
Association of Belgian Shipowners of Inland and Rhine Navigation
Blokvlag
Index of Belgian shipping companies

See also:

Sailing again under the Belgian flag

Here are some extracts from the website (English version) maintained by the Koninklijke Belgische Redersvereniging / Union Royale des Armateurs belges / Royal Belgian Shipowners' Association, a non-profit organization based in Antwerp.

From the Chairman's Preface:

On 15th July 2002, Parliament passed the final measures needed to enable the Belgian fleet to sail once again under the Belgian flag. On 2nd August, the Senate in turn added its approval.

These decisions were the culmination of three years of intense collaboration between the Government and the private sector, to which the opposition also made an important contribution.

Although the requirements under Belgian law were completed in 2002, the European Commission did not give the go-ahead until March 2003 with the effect that the Belgian fleet was not actually able to start sailing under the Belgian flag until 2003.

(...)

The new legislation, referred to above, also guarantees that all crew on board vessels flying the Belgian flag are more than honestly remunerated and enjoy full social security cover. This is not the case with a large number of other flags.

In the eighties we were unable to set up a European maritime register due to the lack of social and fiscal harmonisation between the various Member States. We still do not have this harmonisation but Europe clearly needs a uniform maritime shipping policy. Mrs Loyola de Palacio, the European Transport Commissioner, has already spoken about this on a number of occasions. This is an area where we would like to take the initiative in the Belgian and Luxembourg context or even at Benelux level. The first preparatory interviews have already begun. Serious ship-owners always do well on a level playing field.

If the Member States of the Union, who control almost 45% of the world fleet, took their respective fleets back under their own national flags, the authorities would inherit the technical quality of the vessels and the working conditions on board. By then imposing strict rules at international level, in casu at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), on vessels wishing to sail along our coasts or drop anchor in our ports we would be making a fundamental contribution to shipping safety and quality. The result of such action would be the disappearance from the seas of the shady ship-owners that are damaging our interests through unfair competition.

To end with, I would like to thank all the politicians, private individuals, officials and trade union partners who have made such efforts to get our fleet back under the Belgian flag, so that it can once again make a full contribution to the growth of the Belgian economy. Our young fleet, which is equipped with the latest technologies, commanded by officers from our own Maritime Academy, is the best ambassador Belgium could possibly have overseas!"

In the not so distant past, and mainly for financial (fiscal) reasons, Belgian shipowners preferred 'flagging out' their ships. Luxembourg was an important benificiary.

Jan Mertens, 26 November 2003

Association of Belgian Shipowners of Inland and Rhine Navigation

Flag of VBR - Image by Jarig Bakker, 26 November 2003

The flag of the Vereniging Belgische Reders der Binnen- en Rijnvaart, based in Schoten, is yellow with narrow blue horizontal edges, and the letters VBR in red in the middle.

Jan Mertens, 26 November 2003

Blokvlag

Blokvlag - Image by Thomas Maes, 15 March 2003

The flag made of a white rectangle on a red field is called the blokvlag in inland shipping. It is hoisted on the bows of barges and the like.

Jan Mertens, 15 March 2003

Index of Belgian shipping companies

This list is not a comprehensive list of Belgian shipping companies but only an index of those companies, not necessarily still in business, for which information on their flag is available.