Private equity investment platform Pillarstone is to start the process of rebuilding Italian tanker and bulker owner Premuda after parachuting in partner Jens Martin Jensen to lead the Genoa-based company.
Jensen confirmed to TradeWinds that he took on the role of chief executive for Premuda at the end of June and said Pillarstone is now seeking to grow the company.
“We are looking at various deals and acquisitions and want to expand Premuda — our Italian shipping company,” Jensen said. “That’s our plan.”
Premuda currently has 13 vessels — three tankers and 10 bulkers — and Jensen said the company will continue to operate in the two sectors. “We would like to have both legs to stand on,” he said.
Jensen added: “It is difficult for any shipping company to survive with 13 ships in today’s world, so it is our plan and desire to grow this company and use Premuda as our base for shipping activities.”
The new CEO said the aim is to grow the company’s fleet to between 30 and 40 ships over the next 12 to 18 months.
“I think that is a good base. That’s our target,” he said. “We are working on various debt acquisition and bank deals.”
He declined to go into any details on those potential deals, but he added: “We are working on quite a few.”
Investment opportunity
Jensen, who is no stranger to the sale-and-purchase market with previous roles as Frontline Management CEO and a director of Island Shipbrokers, believes it is a good time to invest.
He says that while the dry bulk market has risen over the past 18 months, there is still some room for improvement and describes the tanker market as “on its knees”.
"Normally the best deals are made in a bad market,” he added.
Jensen said Premuda’s base will remain in Genoa and he will split his time between London and the Italian port city, which he has come to enjoy.
Pillarstone completed the acquisition of Premuda in early 2017. The company was formerly owned by the Rosina family but collapsed with debts amounting to €350m (then around $400m) after struggling with its finances for several years.
Pillarstone chief executive John Davison said at the time: “We believe in the long-term potential of Premuda and the wider Italian shipping sector.”
