Genco Shipping & Trading wants a new entryway to the dry bulk market and is therefore opening an office and a company in Copenhagen under the name Minor Bulk.

Sune Linné Fladberg will head the new venture and will serve as commercial director of Genco within the Minor Bulk segment. Linné Fladberg arrives from an executive position at Clipper, where he has worked since 2007, most recently as vice president and on the Clipper global dry bulk team as well as head of Handysize chartering.

"We continue to take steps to solidify our sizeable and leading drybulk platform and further enhance our ability to provide a full-scale logistics solution to leading charterers and cargo providers on a 24 hour basis. We are pleased to have established a European subsidiary in Denmark and have Sune join our in-house commercial team, complementing our group of seasoned chartering professionals in New York and Singapore, and further strengthening our position in our key trading markets. The ongoing success we have had incorporating voyage charters and direct cargo liftings to our global major and minor bulk operation position us well to continue to take advantage of a market recovery," says John C. Wobensmith, Chief Executive Officer of Genco, in a corporate statement from the carrier," says CEO of Genco, John C. Wobensmith in a corporate statement.

The former Clipper executive looks forward to starting work in his new position.

"Genco is an industry leader with an enhanced commercial platform, and I look forward to contributing to the Company’s success as it seeks to further capitalize on strong and improving dry bulk fundamentals," says Linné Fladberg in the statement.

First profit since 2011

The latest financial report from Genco was the annual report for 2017, which showed a major reduction of the deficit, and the year's fourth quarter was also the first since 2011 to bring a black bottom line to the New York-listed carrier.

A net loss of USD 217.8 million in 2016 shrank to a loss of USD 58.7 million in 2017, marking a reduction of 73 percent.

According to the carrier, the bottom line was improved by ship sales, while revenue grew and came to USD 209.7 million, relative to USD 135.6 million in 2016. The 2017 result was negatively affected, however, by a USD 22 million impairment.

"Genco increased its 2017 cash position to USD 204.9 million, returned to profitability in the fourth quarter and increased fourth quarter TCE by 65 percent highlighting the improving drybulk market conditions and the success of the Company’s commercial, technical and operational initiatives," said CFO Apostolos Zafolias in the statement.

He added that last year the carrier completed several cost cutting measures and reduced costs for operating vessels.

"Looking forward, we remain in a strong position to benefit from the ongoing recovery in the drybulk market," added the CFO.

Genco's fleet counts 60 vessels in the dry cargo segments Capesize, Panamax, Supramax and Handysize. Overall, this corresponds to capacity of around 4,688,000 dwt, writes Genco.

English Edit: Gretchen Deverell Pedersen

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