Grindrod Shipping Holdings is beefing up its board with some big hitters as part of its takeover by Taylor Maritime Investments (TMI).
Chairman Michael Hankinson and Murray Grindrod have retired as directors, and three more places at the top table have been recreated, meaning five new recruits.
The Singapore-based owner is being bought by London-listed TMI, whose chief executive, Ed Buttery, has been appointed to the board, along with Charles Maltby, CEO of LPG carrier owner BW Epic Kosan.
German owner Reederei Nord’s managing director, Kurt Klemme, also joins the board, together with investment banker Rebecca Brosnan and former Epic Gas director and finance executive Cullen Schaar.
Quah Ban Huat, John Herholdt, Paul Over and interim Grindrod CEO and finance chief Stephen Griffiths retain their seats.
Klemme will be the new chairman. He has nearly 25 years of experience in the shipping industry and is also chairman of the German Shipowners’ Defence Association.
Brosnan has more than 20 years’ experience in investment banking, financial markets and commodities and is chief financial officer and head of strategy of Diginex, an ESG and sustainability technology business.
She also serves on the board of City Bank in Bangladesh and was previously head of strategy at the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
Schaar, a 15-year veteran of shipping investment, owns Schaar Holdings, an investment holding company focused on the finance, energy and transport sectors.
Pacific Basin alumni
Buttery and Maltby both held positions at bulker owner Pacific Basin before taking up their current roles.
TMI said on 29 November that the offer valuing Grindrod at $494m had become unconditional.
The dry bulk player already owned 26% of Grindrod and now controls 73.8%.
It is paying $26 per share for the Nasdaq-listed bulker owner.
TMI’s 26 owned handysizes will be combined with Grindrod’s 31 ships: 12 ultramaxes, four supramaxes and 15 handies.
The two companies have a market cap of around $919m, while VesselsValue assesses their ships as worth $799m.
