The European Community Shipowners' Associations (ECSA) has named DFDS chief executive Niels Smedegaard as its new president.
The Dane is due to start in January 2016 replacing Thomas Rehder who has been at the helm of ECSA since December 2013.
Panagiotis Laskaridis, founder and chief executive of Laskaridis Shipping has been named as vice-president.
“Building on the excellent work of my predecessor, my focus as the new ECSA President will be on highlighting the importance of shipping and that we, as industry, become even more proactive in finding solutions to the challenges that lie ahead,” said Smedegaard.
“The review of the EU shipping policy in 2017 is high on my agenda and I am positive that improved dialogue with all relevant stakeholders will lead to the needed progress in a variety of policy issues.”
Outgoing president Thomas Rehder commented: “The last two years have been an extremely interesting and thought-provoking period during which we have helmed the ECSA boat through heavy seas.
“I leave ECSA in my successor’s capable hands and am absolutely convinced that the new president will be successful in defending the interests of our industry.”
Smedegaard has been CEO of the DFDS Group since 2007 and currently serves as vice chairman of the Danish Shipowners’ Association.
The ECSA, which was founded in 1965, is the trade association representing the national shipowners’ associations of the EU and Norway, or 40% of the world fleet by gross tonnage.
The structure of the ECSA consists of a board of directors, three specialised committees, a number of working groups and task forces, targeting specific issues, and a permanent secretariat based in Brussels.
