[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 8]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 10693-10694]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



           THE HONORABLE MAERSK MOLLER, A MARITIME VISIONARY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JAMES L. OBERSTAR

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 13, 2001

  Mr. OBERSTAR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to a most 
extraordinary maritime leader, Mr. Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller, a true 
visionary of the international shipping community and owner of the A.P. 
Moller Group. Mr. Moller's company, Maersk-Sealand, is a global 
transportation provider whose fleet of ships make it the world's 
largest shipping company. I am also very pleased to note that Maersk 
Moller's ships fly the American flag and generate much needed jobs for 
U.S. maritime labor. In fact, Maersk-Sealand directly generates 
employment for approximately 9000 people in its United States shipping 
business and it also serves more than 30,000 U.S. based companies 
engaged in international trade.
  Maersk is truly a remarkable company, Mr. Speaker, and Maersk Mc-
Kinney Moller is an exceptional person. Mr. Moller's family history is 
rooted in the United States. His mother was an American, born in Kansas 
City. During the time spent in this country during World War II, Mr. 
Moller developed a keen appreciation of the many sacrifices Americans 
made during that great struggle. Many of the ships in the A.P. Moller 
fleet were used by the United States and our allies. Following World 
War II, Maersk Moller, his father, and many other people worked hard to 
rebuild their civilian shipping enterprise into the world-class company 
it is today.
  I would like to cite a few of the significant Maersk milestones.
  The company's United States headquarters was founded in 1943.
  Today Maersk has 10 United States corporate entities dedicated to 
ship management, terminal operations, trucking, rail transportation, 
and third party logistics and, as mentioned, it generates employment 
for approximately 9000 Americans.
  In 1947, a prominent affiliate, Maersk Line, Limited, was chartered 
in Delaware.
  Maersk Line, Limited is the largest U.S.-flag carrier serving the 
foreign trades of the United States.
  53 vessels documented under the U.S.-flag are owned, operated or 
chartered by Maersk Line, Limited.
  29 of these ships are dedicated to service for the U.S. government.
  Maersk Line, Limited has become a critical partner in the preposition 
ship program for the Marine Corps and U.S. Army.
  Maersk Line, Limited ships were the first vessels to arrive in Desert 
Storm and off-load critically needed Marine Corps supplies and 
equipment.
  Space on Maersk commercial ships was provided free of charge to the 
U.S. government so the government could load much needed supplies for 
our troops during the sustainment phase of the operation.
  Mr. Speaker, during a recent discussion with Mr. Maersk Moller, I was 
impressed with his deep desire to maintain a competitive U.S.-

[[Page 10694]]

flag presence in the international trade. Mr. Moller is a true believer 
in United States flag shipping and our maritime interests are the 
better for his support of a U.S.-flag fleet.
  I believe that we need new initiatives to stimulate an international 
U.S.-flag presence. A tax-based methodology, for instance, has been 
used in other countries to encourage growth in their merchant fleets; 
we should have similar incentives for American workers to attract 
talented people to this important industrial base.
  I am working on legislation to provide such incentives for our U.S.-
flag operations, under the Maritime Security Program. Companies like 
Maersk are very willing to invest in U.S.-flag shipping and make a 
contribution to the national security interests of the United States. 
We must give them encouragement to do so.
  I congratulate Mr. Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller on his many personal 
accomplishments, his longstanding desire to maintain a U.S.-flag 
presence, and the numerous contributions he has made to foster trade in 
the foreign maritime commerce of the United States.

                          ____________________