MAY 7, 2013 — Blue Star Line Chairman Clive Palmer has announced the appointment of V.Ships Leisure as the official ship management services partner for The Blue Star Line's Titanic II project.

Mr. Palmer said the appointment of V.Ships Leisure further strengthened the team that had been assembled to deliver Titanic II in 2016.

V.Ships Leisure CEO Andrea Zito (left) and Blue Star Line Chairman Clive Palmer

"I would like to welcome V.Ships Leisure to the team and look forward to working closely with them on this landmark project," he said.

V.Ships Leisure CEO Andrea Zito said the company was pleased to be associated with Blue Star Line and Titanic II.

"We are very pleased to be part of the team that will re-create this iconic ship in a project which we will combine our current know-how with our heritage from the time Vlasov created the first Sitmar Line and then Sitmar Cruises," he said.

V.Ships Leisure 200 shore-based and 7,000 crew members provide services to more than 120 cruise ships, ferries and super yachts. These services are in many cases customised to meet the specific needs of clients including the ability to provide integrated deck and engine and hotel management as part of the same service offering.

Its parent company V.Group was formed as V.Ships in 1984 by the de-merger of the ship management division of Monaco-based shipowner, Vlasov.

Since formation, the Group has increased the range of ship management and related services offered to the shipping, leisure and offshore industries and expanded its network of offices to become a leading maritime outsourcing group of companies.

V.Group's primary customers are ship and other asset owners who deploy their assets worldwide. These assets include tankers, bulk carriers, gas carriers, chemical tankers, FSOs/FPSOs, containerships, cruise ships, ferries and super yachts.

Titanic II is scheduled to be launched from its construction base in China in 2016, before her maiden passenger voyage retracing its original journey from Southampton to New York.

"Titanic II will be a regular feature on the transatlantic route between the U.K. and U.S.A.," Mr. Palmer said. "This magnificent vessel is being constructed in memory of the heroic people who served on the first ship, as well as the passengers who sadly shared their fate.

"We also want to recognize the artists and artisans whose skill, creativity and dexterity has never been fully recognized because of the ship's limited service."