Brussels sits up and notices success story at Det Norske Veritas.

(From Lloyds List)

NORWEGIAN classification society Det Norske Veritas is in fine financial health. Net profit more than doubled last year and almost a fifth of the world fleet is now operating under its class.

Last year profit after tax stood at Nkr300m ($44.1m) compared with Nkr140m, although group revenues remained unchanged at around Nkr5.7bn.

As DNV's presence has grown on the international stage, Brussels has begun to take an interest in how this not-for-profit group is administered.

Earlier this year an eight-person audit delegation from the EU visited its offices just outside Oslo with the task of finding out more about the governance model of class, or, in other words, who runs a classification society.

'There is some concern over governance of class societies, and whether we are really independent,' admits Terje Stallstrom, head of class policy and quality management.

Questions raised by European administrators seek to understand the governance model for class societies, identify who runs the classification societies and assess their level of independence from the shipowners who pay for their services.