Clipper Bulk is cutting 40 of its 140 shore staff and closing its Tokyo office as part of a major overhaul that sees fresh capital injected into the business.
The Jensen family will retain control after the process, but the company will focus on operating rather than fully owning tonnage.
Clipper Bulk chief executive Peter Norborg said the new funds and reduced costs will allow the business to move forward again.
“The action today is partly driven by our experience in the last quarter where the market really sat down and collapsed with a significant drop,” he said.
“We had to put ourselves in a position where it is not only about hoping for a better market, but being able to act in whatever market we are entering. Therefore, we are cutting size now and reducing our costs by about one-third.”
Global redundancies
Of the positions to be lost, 28 will be at its Copenhagen headquarters and the remaining 12 from offices in Houston, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Nassau.
In a statement, Clipper Bulk did not say how much new capital it had secured or who has provided the cash.
Norborg declined to offer specifics. However, he confirmed the Jensen family would remain the controlling shareholder with Frank Jensen still in the chairman’s seat.
“There will be sufficient capital to perform on that strategy,” he said.
I feel we are in safe waters. Probably, I’m more comfortable than I have been for many years in Clipper
Peter Norborg
“I feel we are in safe waters. Probably, I’m more comfortable than I have been for many years in Clipper.”
Reports of a shake-up at Clipper Bulk emerged last month with the Sofart daily reporting the company’s bulker fleet had been sold.
At the time Clipper Bulk was listed with 15 bulkers of between 28,000 dwt and 77,000 dwt, all built from 2006 to 2015.
Norborg confirmed the company no longer has any fully-owned ships but does still own a handful of vessels under joint venture structures.
“We have sold ships over time,” he said. “It does not mean we have a strategy of not owning ships.”
Norborg added: “We just see the market is behaving in a more unpredictable way. We have been reducing our fleet significantly over the last quarter.
Fresh start
“We thought it was necessary for us to do all that was necessary to get through the market we are in now and start from a better spot when we get this capital injection.”
After the overhaul, Clipper Bulk will have an operated fleet of about 80 vessels, including those in its two pools, which is pointed to helping deliver critical mass.
Norborg said the strength in niche trades and in small joint ventures is a throwback to the “old DNA of Clipper”.
He explained owning ships remained part of the new Clipper Bulk strategy. “We want to have sufficient capital to invest in a ship or some ships now and then when we feel the timing is right,” Norborg said.
Norborg will continue to lead Clipper Bulk as chief executive. The remaining senior management team will be Amrit Peter Kalsi, chief operating officer and head of chartering; Thomas Martinussen, head of legal; Britt Jorgensen leading HR and communications and Anders Bruun as head of business development.
A new finance chief has yet to be appointed.
