Affinity (Shipping) has opened a new office in Rio de Janeiro that will bolster the shipbroking group’s activities in chemical and specialised product tankers.

Experienced Brazilian shipbroker Lucas Gomara has been hired as general manager and partner in the business, which began operating on Wednesday.

The new office will support Affinity’s office in Bergen, Norway, which specialises in chartering activities for chemicals and other specialised cargoes with a big focus on Latin American business. The Bergen office opened last year and is headed by Luis-A Salomon.

“We will continue our growth with a specific focus on Latin America and are confident that Lucas’ expertise and experience will be an added value across the existing Affinity presence in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru and Uruguay,” Salomon and colleague Hans Bredrup said in an email circulated to clients on Wednesday and seen by TradeWinds.

The announcement follows news in February that Affinity has teamed up with Wilhelmsen Ship Management to set up an independent company that will provide compliance services for the European Union Emissions Trading System.

Affinity last year established Affinity Shipbrokers (Canada) in Vancouver, Canada, with the hire of dry cargo broker Thor Emil Brandrud from rival shop Simpson Spence Young.

It is from this office that Affinity aims to grow its dry cargo business in the Americas, particularly in the north Pacific region.

The Affinity group booked profit after tax of £2.13m ($2.48m) for its 2021 financial year, less than one-third of the £7.78m it recorded the previous year.

Revenue was slightly softer year on year and there were challenges for Affinity’s non-core businesses, but the company said the big drop in profit was mainly because the banner year it had in 2020 was a tough act to follow.