Strategy

• Organisational development – NORDEN considers human activities an essential element in the Company’s endeavours to create value for its shareholders. The distinguishing factors are the competences within the organisation and the Company’s ability to employ the growing fleet and to purchase and sell vessels at the times when this is deemed most advantageous. NORDEN therefore sees it as a constant challenge to attract, develop and retain competent employees and continuously strive to develop the overall competences within the organisation. These years, the Company is focusing particularly on recruiting shipping trainees to secure its future growth and continuously growing business volume.
• Partner focus – NORDEN is dependent on having good relations with shipyards as well as customers, and the Company is dedicated to treating these as partners. Although marginally better terms might during certain periods be achieved by changing partners, the Company is convinced that building and maintaining lasting relations with long-term partners provides the strongest basis for expanding and employing its fleet. By expanding representative offices close to where the customers are and conducting regular customer satisfaction surveys, NORDEN strives to continually improve customer service and thus build on a mutually valuable partnership.
• Risk management – Active risk management is a key element in the Company’s business model. The Company actively manages the primary commercial risks relating to the shipping market: fluctuations in freight rates and prices of vessels. In response to spot market rate fluctuations, the Company fixes part of the fleet on long-term charters. NORDEN keeps a close watch of the markets and continually adapts its fleet capacity through a flexible business model. Equally, the Company adjusts coverage to market conditions and expectations. Other risks not related to the shipping market – bunker prices, exchange rates etc. – are hedged in so far as possible (see note 2 to the financial statements).
• Financial strength – NORDEN maintains strong financial resources in order to be able to take advantage of the opportunities arising in volatile market conditions. Shipping is a cyclical business and strong capital resources are considered necessary for the Company’s ability to maintain and develop its commercial position. The Company’s capital structure will continuously reflect its considerable offbalance sheet liabilities in the form of future time charter payments and payments to shipyards in respect of future newbuildings. For more details on capital management, see note 2 to the financial statements.
• Profitable growth – NORDEN’s business model is intended to withstand volatile market conditions by being flexible and ensuring a long-term, solid cash flow. Growth should always be profitable and the development of the business volume will always happen in accordance with this requirement. The extension of activities will always be based on the Company’s core competences. This is ensured by means of, among other things, a major newbuilding programme. At the end of 2007, NORDEN owned a total of 14 vessels and had 35 newbuildings on order.

Corporate Social Responsibility

Previously, NORDEN addressed individual issues on the CSR agenda based on the Company’s values. An example of this is our longstanding work on occupational health and safety at sea, involving regular information, systematic examination of near misses and an extensive set of KPIs for officers in order to eliminate industrial injuries onboard the Company’s vessels and help minimise the vessels’ impact on the external environment through groundings, collisions, spills etc.