Northern Shipping

"Shortly after, Northern Shipping managed to sell two old Westfal-Larsen ships to North Vietnam. And when "Haukanger" and "Kronprins Harald" sailed eastward after the peace settlement, Northern made its first profit of a few hundred thousand kroner. Perhaps there was hope, after all?"

"The most important contract for the expatriate Lebanese involved shipping four to five million tons of oil from Ras Tanura, Saudi Arabia, to Greece. Later, they secured a similar mission, where they were to transport 250,000 tons of oil per month from Saudi Arabia to Syria. Ordinary persuasion was not enough to secure the Syria job, but when a centrally placed contact was presented with a white bulletproof Rolls Royce, the Syrians became more receptive. Thus, the tankers went on shuttle traffic from the Persian Gulf, and money began to flow in. Over the next few years, up to 40 tankers were involved in this oil shipping, and Northern Shipping was the exclusive broker."

"The most important contract for the expatriate Lebanese involved shipping four to five million tons of oil from Ras Tanura, Saudi Arabia, to Greece. Later, they secured a similar mission, where they were to transport 250,000 tons of oil per month from Saudi Arabia to Syria. Ordinary persuasion was not enough to secure the Syria job, but when a centrally placed contact was presented with a white bulletproof Rolls Royce, the Syrians became more receptive. Thus, the tankers went on shuttle traffic from the Persian Gulf, and money began to flow in. Over the next few years, up to 40 tankers were involved in this oil shipping, and Northern Shipping was the exclusive broker."

"With Northern Shipping, the first building blocks were put in place in an international shipping empire. Liberia was the cornerstone. The West African country rightly bore its name. In terms of shipping, it was clearly about freedom. There was no Brønnøysund Register where one had to submit accounts, and no owners were mentioned in the papers of Liberia’s trade register. But Liberia is not a banana republic in all areas. The USA's most skilled lawyers have designed the country’s maritime laws, which are almost identical to the American ones. Shipowners risked no legal surprises by sailing under the Liberian flag."

"The most important contract for the expatriate Lebanese involved shipping four to five million tons of oil from Ras Tanura, Saudi Arabia, to Greece. Later, they secured a similar mission, where they were to transport 250,000 tons of oil per month from Saudi Arabia to Syria. Ordinary persuasion was not enough to secure the Syria job, but when a centrally placed contact was presented with a white bulletproof Rolls Royce, the Syrians became more receptive. Thus, the tankers went on shuttle traffic from the Persian Gulf, and money began to flow in. Over the next few years, up to 40 tankers were involved in this oil shipping, and Northern Shipping was the exclusive broker."

"The time that followed was hard. At Northern Shipping, they kept receiving threatening calls from Peter Siemer, some of which were recorded. Finally, the three former partners played their best card: Fredriksen's dealings with the Norwegian tax authorities. Fredriksen was faced with an ultimatum: Either settle all accounts, or they would tip off the tax office about certain accounts in Jersey and other places. Shortly thereafter, John Fredriksen moved from Norway. On Monday, October 2, 1978, the unknown company Pantera Services Ltd. bought the three-story house at 23, Shawfield Street near King’s Road in Chelsea, London."

"The gold rush began early in 1978, and the starting point was the least likely for the arch-capitalist John Fredriksen, namely East Germany. Ocean Tanker managed the entire East German tanker fleet, eight ships, and Northern Shipping brokered all the shipments. The Soviet Union supplied the Germans with oil, but occasionally turned off the taps, and then the Germans themselves had to send their ships to friendly Iraq and exchange for oil. Otherwise, Ocean Tanker controlled the fleet, but this limited freedom of action meant that the price Ocean Tanker paid was low. Much lower than what a skilled broker could achieve for individual trips in the market."

"It is not easy for a new and unknown Liberian company to take in ships at a fixed price. The owner of the ship cannot be sure to get their settlement if the market falls, and the company does not have significant capital. However, initially, it was a question whether the shipowners knew that their ships ended up in Ocean Tanker, and not in Fahdi Shipping, which most were well acquainted with. It all went through Northern Shipping as a broker, and Northern was so active that many shipowners perhaps did not think to ask any further."

"In its early years, Northern Shipping was in a peculiar situation. They made good deals and earned plenty of money, but settlements always came afterward, so the company's coffers were always depleted. Once, the constant shortage of money almost had catastrophic consequences. In the late 70s, it was common for brokers to buy a small share of a ship in exchange for handling all the brokerage of the ship. At this time, the "limited partnership king" Parley Augustsson was at his peak, and Northern entered into an agreement to buy ten percent of his ship "Balder Alvar.""