On the afternoon of May 14, a delegation from the ship management company OSM Thome, led by Chief Crew Management Officer Julia Anastasiou, visited Dalian Maritime University. Vice President Zhao Youtao received the guests in Conference Room 919 of the Administration Building.

Zhao Youtao extended a warm welcome to Julia Anastasiou and her delegation for their visit and gave a brief overview of the university’s distinctive features, talent cultivation, and international collaborations. He expressed the hope that this visit would serve as a starting point for expanding cooperation between the two sides—particularly in the training of high-caliber maritime professionals—and contribute jointly to the green transformation of the global shipping industry.

Julia Anastasiou expressed her gratitude for the warm reception and introduced OSM Thome’s global business presence and development strategy in the Chinese market. She emphasized that OSM Thome places great importance on the development of China’s seafaring workforce and looks forward to deepening cooperation with the university in areas such as crew training and the cultivation of internationally oriented maritime professionals, with the shared goal of helping Chinese maritime talent thrive on the global stage.

During the meeting, the two sides held discussions on cooperation areas including maritime education, crew training, and the development of the seafarer workforce towards internationalization, modernization, and intelligence.

Following the meeting, the delegation visited key facilities in our university, including the land-based engine room, Maritime Education Museum, and navigation training simulator lab.

The meeting witnessed the participation of leadership representatives from the following departments and colleges: International Cooperation and Exchange Office, Academic Affairs Office, Navigation College, Marine Engineering College, College of Marine Electrical Engineering, and Continuing Educational College.

It is reported that OSM Thome was formed in 2023 through the merger of two international shipping companies: Norway's OSM Maritime Group and Singapore's Thome Group. According to the 2024 ranking of the world's top ten ship management companies released by Lloyd’s List, OSM Thome ranks second globally in terms of fleet management scale. The company employs approximately 31,000 staff and operates over 30 branches, subsidiaries, and offices across six continents. With a managed fleet of around 1,000 vessels, its core services encompass end-to-end ship management and crew management solutions.