Barber Ship Management establishes presence in tanker sector

Wilhelmsen Ship Management (WSM) returned to the tanker sector by acquiring Ahrenkiel Tankers and renaming it Barber Ship Management. Roine Alquist joined Barber as CEO in 2021 with the task of rebuilding the historic brand in the tanker sector. Alquist’s extensive tanker experience, combined with a blend of entrepreneurial business-building and large organisation support drew him to the role. His aim is to build a brand with a great story and uphold the responsibility that comes with it. However, building the tanker business presents challenges as the ships managed by Ahrenkiel Tankers are relatively old, and last year’s blistering second-hand market for tankers resulted in some vessels being sold, reducing the fleet to two.

Barber is confident of working with a US-based fund to bear fruit from the early stages on a newbuild project. They signed contracts for four plus four newbuilds, which are sophisticated MR tankers. The involvement Barber had in this deal is consistent with Alquist’s vision that the company should offer an overarching asset management service. The focus is more on quality than building a massive fleet, and the company would be happy with a fleet of 20 to 25 vessels of all types of tankers by the end of 2025/26.

Alquist believes that if they can offer high-quality service at an affordable price while matching operating costs in line with the market, they will have a great model that people will flock to. With a balanced approach and their abilities, they aim to grow their fleet and uphold their responsibility to build a brand with an excellent story while providing an overarching asset management service. The company’s next focus is on quality when it comes to growing the fleet. Wilhelmsen Ship Management is confident they have laid out a good plan for the coming years to genuinely succeed in the tanker sector.

Tags: Management & Crewing,Europe,Wilhelmsen

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