The new Bahrain-based group, which will launch in April, aims to capitalise on the boom in global shipping with a placement of 1.2 billion shares with a nominal value of KD0.1 each.

The company will launch with a fleet of up to seven bulk carriers and two tankers, but wants to increase this to 45 vessels by 2015. The group’s founding investors come from Bahrain, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

The closing date for applications to subscribe to the placement of shares is 31 January. The company has indicated it will consider listing on the Dubai Financial Market in the future.