Maersk Tankers has let go 14 management staff globally including the commercial heads of its Singapore-based pool operations. The move is characterised as a tightening up of an excessive corporate organisation it inherited from the Maersk Group in 2017.
The company is remaining tight-lipped on the identities and roles of those leaving.
But in Singapore, James Killingsworth, head of partner relations for the Far East at Maersk Tankers, and his colleague, Henrik Hartzell, both separately confirmed to TradeWinds that they are leaving.
They declined to comment further and referred enquiries to Maersk Tankers spokespersons.
The two are on a three-month gardening leave until 20 May.
The Maersk Tankers cuts come in the wake of the acquisition of Penfield Marine, but a company spokesperson told TradeWinds the two are not connected.
“[These] changes were not related to the acquisition of Penfield Marine, but solely to Maersk Tankers, which since the split from the Maersk Group in 2017 maintained a corporate structure that exceeds the needs of the company we are today. We, therefore, simplified the organisation to align with our size,” she told TradeWinds.
“More specifically, we have reduced the managerial layers and decentralised some areas with the aim of reducing administrative burdens and complexity.
“Unfortunately, the changes also meant that we said farewell to 14 colleagues across the organisation.”
Market sources told TradeWinds that Copenhagen-based Jesper Bo Hansen, Maersk Tankers head of partnerships & pool management, informed Far East pool partners and customers last week of the new arrangements and addressed their concerns.
As part of the Maersk Tankers’ acquisition of Connecticut-based Penfield Marine, Penfield co-founder and chief executive Tim Brennan assumed the role of chief commercial officer.
Maersk Tankers expansion-minded chief executive Tina Revsbech and Brennan confirmed the merger, first uncovered by TradeWinds, in an announcement in early January.
Penfield co-founder Eric Haughn also continues in management of the merged company, with its combined managed fleet of some 240 vessels from small clean tankers to suezmax crude carriers, 45 of them owned by affiliated entities.
Last week, the Penfield Marine corporate name was retired as “part of the ongoing integration of the two companies”, according to a Maersk Tankers announcement.
“For the time being, the Penfield pools will continue as Penfield Tankers, which means that when vessels are fixed in the market, they will still be fixed with Penfield as counterpart,” the company said.
Besides adding vessels, the move expands the traditional Maersk Tankers focus from clean petroleum products to a greater share of dirty products, entailing global commercial contact with new partners both on the owning and chartering side.
The management shake-up was an abrupt one. In Singapore, the pool managers were already tidying their desks before pool partners and customers were informed.
Pools powerhouse
Outgoing Singapore pools head Killingsworth, with experience running dry and wet pools for TBS Shipping Services and Heidmar, was brought in 2019 to make the Far Eastern side of such contact easier.
“This is quite a shock because [Killingsworth and Hartzell] are powerhouses of the Maersk Tankers pool. They brought in a lot of ships,” said an industry source outside Maersk Tankers with insight into the pool.
“That desk was set up originally because they wanted to be able to make decisions and communicate them to Far East pool partners within their working day,” said the source. “It will be interesting to see how Copenhagen wants to handle that.”
Copenhagen apparently feels up to that challenge.
“We have global offices to ensure our partners and customers are serviced in their time zones,” said the Maersk Tankers spokesperson.
