Dutch based Longship Group BV has acquired 50 per cent of Wagle Chartering AS. Wagle is a broker, agent and commercial manager based in Moss, Norway. Through the acquisition, Longship seeks to enhance its position in Scandinavia and to enable active participation in the ongoing consolidation of the dry bulk short sea market.
Wagle Chartering and Longship have long cooperated with each other and will now seek to optimise their synergies to become a notable player in Northern Europe.
‘Our acquisition of Wagle Chartering complements our overall service offering as industrial carrier, as we can now provide a wider spectrum of sizes to the shortsea trade,’ says Øyvind Sivertsen, CEO of Longship. ‘Industrial Shipping is deeply embedded in the core of both companies and this investment therefore constitutes a perfect match. The Norwegian roots that Longship already has will now become even stronger.’ Sivertsen is originally from Bergen in Norway and has been based in Groningen, the Netherlands, for 15 years.
André Borge, CEO of Wagle Chartering, adds: ‘The new setup adds to our overall fleet capacity and grants Longship geographic presence to treat and manage shipments for both our customers. It is a desired step for us, given our successful ventures during last years and the mutual industrial mindset.’
Sustainable growth
Longship and Wagle Chartering have initiated several projects for the further renewal and expansion of their fleet which will have clear focus on environmental solutions. In this way the companies aim to ensure sustainable growth with a fleet that will continue to be future proof and that will serve its objective to reduce the environmental impact.
Longship was established in 2009 and has since developed into a renowned name in the dry bulk short sea segment. Longship operates a homogeneous fleet of about 30 modern vessels with an average age of less than 14 years.
Wagle Chartering, established in Oslo in 2003, is a well-known competitive chartering broker and agency with a history dating back to 1936. As exclusive chartering agent and commercial manager, Wagle presently controls around 10 general cargo vessels in the range of 2000 to 13,500 tonnes deadweight from their offices in Moss, close to Oslo.
Picture: Øyvind Sivertsen, CEO of Longship Group BV (right) and Michel Cigrang director of Longship Group BV.
