Effectiveness of digital tools reviewed in fourth TMS Covid 19 webinar

Imtiaz Shaikh

Chairman,
Tomini Group

Imtiaz Shaikh is the founder and driving force behind the success of the Dubai-based Tomini Group. With over four decades of experience in the shipping industry, Imtiaz has built up strong and well-established relationships with leading charterers and traders. Under his leadership Tomini is also now entering a new era with the delivery of a number of newbuild bulk carriers. With a passion for classic cars, Imtiaz has built up a private collection of around 100 unique vehicles and has diversified the business into the classic car market. Born in Pakistan, Imtiaz has lived in the United Kingdom and Dubai, and has three children. He has a Bachelor of Commerce and a Post Graduate qualification in shipping from the London School of Trade.

Petros Doukas

Mayor of Sparta; President of Capital Partners and former Deputy Minister of Finance and Foreign Affairs, Greece

Petros Doukas has a Ph.D. in Economics from New York University. He studied Economics and International Relations at George Washington University (Bachelor of Arts), Management and Fiscal Relations at Columbia (MBA) and Economics at New York University (MA and Ph.D. in Economics). From 1979 to 1985 he worked as an Economist and Currency Analyst for Citibank in New York, and also as Foreign Exchange Exposure Management Advisor, Foreign Exchange Dealer, and Money Market Dealer. In 1986 he took over as Citibank Investment Banking Country Head and Country Treasurer for Greece, and in 1990 also took over as Country Head for the Institutional and Corporate Banking sectors. From August 1992 to October 1993 he was Deputy Minister of Finance in the government of Konstantinos Mitsotakis, with the Public Debt and Public Assets among his responsibilities. In 1994 he returned to Citibank, and in 1996 he founded Capital Partners SA., which deals mainly in strategic partnerships and company takeovers and mergers. In March 2004 he was elected deputy for the Precinct of Attica and was appointed Deputy Minister for the Economy and Finance, Head of the General Accounting Office. His responsibilities included the formulation and implementation of the Budget, Central Government Debt & Operations, Government Security Auctions, Public Trusts, Loans and Bonds, the Public Corporation for Moveable Assets, Subsidy Programs and Management of Public Funds, the State Bursar’s and Payments Office (State Treasury), Fiscal Relations with the EU, Fiscal Validation of the Ministries, Prefectural Governments and Legal Entities under Public Statute and Civil Servants Pension Funds. In September 2007 he was re-elected MP for Attica and appointed Deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Diplomacy.

Bill Guo

Executive Director, Shipping, ICBC FINANCIAL LEASING CO. LTD

Mr. Bill Guo joined in ICBC Leasing in 2013. He is now Executive Director of Shipping Business Unit, mainly responsible for the leasing business of the global market and Dry Bulk sector business. Before working for ICBCL, he had been working for Maersk Group for over 10 years as the management positions in different countries, with the solid knowledge in shipping business and financial leasing.

Dr. Mohammed Sharaf

CEO, Green Dome Investments; former Group CEO, DP World; former Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs & International Cooperation for Economic and Trade Affairs, UAE

Dr. Mohammed Sharaf serves as Board member of Sharaf Group, Dar Altakaful Insurance and Mawarid Finance.

He has served as an Assistant Minister for Economic and Trade Affairs at the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation from July 2016 to February 2019.

As an Assistant Minister for Economic and Trade Affairs, contributed as Chair of Appointment and Relocation of Emirati Diplomats globally and within the Mofaic (Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation). As chair of the foreign direct Investment Committee, have contributed to attract over $ 3.8b in direct foreign Investment in 2018.

Dr. Sharaf has led the Innovation Team and chaired the FDI Committee and the Human Capital Committee at the Ministry, all key drivers of the implementation of MOFAIC’s strategic objectives.

Before joining the Foreign Ministry, Dr. Sharaf held the position of Group Chief Executive Officer at DP World since the global port’s operator was first established in 2005. He played a key role in the development of DP World’s Global Strategy including its home base Jebel Ali and Port Rashid. The Strategy included its Global Trade Enabler role in the Industry driven by its core and innovative IT platform. He has successfully served for 22 years in DP World.

Highly accomplished, resourceful, and innovative in trading and shipping and logistics leader. Customer-focused and expert in managing global shipping, transportation and container terminals across the globe.

Dr. Sharaf holds a Degree in Business Administration from the University of Arizona, Tucson, USA and an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Arizona, USA.

Sanjay Mehta

Chairman,
S One Capital

Sanjay K. Mehta has over 25 years’ experience in proprietary fund management, investment banking and mergers and acquisition. Sanjay has wealth of experience in the industries of maritime transportation, port infrastructure, mobile telephony, oil & gas and power generation industries in which he has lead financing and M&A transaction in excess of USD 12 billion.

Sanjay since 2014 is chairman of his family trust fund, S ONE Trust and is CEO of S ONE Capital, asset manager of the trust fund based out of Geneva and London, prior to that Sanjay held the position of Managing Director, Essar Capital Limited asset manager for Essar Global Fund a USD 34 billion proprietary fund of the Ruia family. In 2006 Sanjay was instrumental in setting up of Essar Global Fund and its investment manager Essar Capital Limited. At Essar Global Fund he lead and executed on a wide range of high profile M&A, financing, capital market transactions including one of the largest IPO on London Stock Exchange.

Prior to joining Essar, Sanjay worked for Hambros Bank, London, Goldman Sachs / J Aron & Co, New York and American Marine Advisors Inc. New York. Mr. Mehta is independent director and member of risk committee on the board of Steamship Mutual Limited, London. He is also independent board member of American Bureau of Shipping.

Sanjay has MBA from London Business School, London He graduated with Honours Degree from London School of Economics, London. He resides in Geneva and England.

Mrs. H.K. Joshi

Chairperson and Managing Director,
The Shipping Corporation of India

Mrs. H.K.Joshi, Chairperson and Managing Director, joined SCI on 5th February, 2015 as Director (Finance) and was also appointed as CFO, SCI w.e.f. the same date. During her term lasting less than five years, she held multiple additional charges from time to time at the Board level – of Director (Personnel & Administration) in 2017-18, Director (Bulk Carrier & Tankers) in 2019, CMD from 12th September 2019 consequent to completion of the tenure of the former CMD and currently she holds the additional charge of Director (Finance) w.e.f. 19th December 2019 when she was appointed by the Government of India as the Chairperson & Managing Director, SCI.

Mr. Nitin Mehta

CEO,
Tomini Shipping

Nitin Mehta is a passionate business leader and CEO of Tomini Group having previously served as CFO. He joined in 2013, and during this period he has led the Group through significant revenue and geographic growth.

Extensive experience in diverse markets with a profound knowledge of finance and proven advisory skills allow Nitin to provide solutions by getting all stakeholders together to achieve common objectives.

Leading the Group’s core business interests in shipping and diversifications into other industries including classic cars, Nitin also oversees Tomini’s fleet under construction and manages over USD 300 million of assets.

Nitin believes in keeping things simple and attributes his success to mutually respectful relationships, which he has built over his extensive career. He is driven to uphold the highest level of ethics, credibility and transparency through a diverse and holistic range of competencies he has gained over the last 23 years across multiple geographies.

Prior to joining he held several executive positions for a number of banks including Standard Chartered Citibank and Mashreq bank. Nitin holds an MBA.

Dr. Noura Al Dhaheri

Head of the Digital Cluster, Abu Dhabi Ports and CEO of Maqta Gateway LLC

Dr Noura Al Dhaheri is the Head of Abu Dhabi Ports Digital Cluster and CEO of Maqta Gateway, a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Ports, Maqta Gateway offers the first purpose-built and most innovative Port Community System (PCS) in the UAE. Designed in line with international standards, Maqta Gateway acts as a single window provider facilitating information flow between all port stakeholders and users.

Dr Al Dhaheri has assumed leadership of Maqta Gateway from its inception in 2014. Since then, she has activated the development of the PCS system and is now spearheading its market expansion.

Dr Al Dhaheri has helped usher in a seamless transition into a totally digitalised way of conducting trade, creating a bridge between data and the port’s business operations, while aligning with the Abu Dhabi 2030 economic vision of optimising port processes.

Her innovative vision, coupled with remarkable technical and managerial skills, has been instrumental to achieving successful implementation of the most advanced and high standard port community system. Maqta Gateway will be providing efficient and modern port community solutions across the UAE which will support a sustainable and growing trade business in the Emirates.

Hans-Christian Mordhorst

COO,
Marcura Group

Hans-Christian is COO of The Marcura Group and Managing Director of DA-Desk, the flagship of Marcura (2001) and the world’s largest independent provider of port cost management services. As Group COO, Hans-Christian’s primary focus is high quality service delivery and strategic direction for Marcura’s established businesses in the payments, procurement and voyage administration sectors. As Managing Director of DA-Desk, he also manages relations with existing and new DA-Desk customers, agents and partners to ensure they derive the maximum value from the services of DA-Desk. He has held a number of positions previously including Chief Commercial Officer for Team Lines, a leading European short sea shipping company; Managing Director for Maersk Line in Russia, Finland and Baltic states; and European Sales & marketing Director for P&O Nedlloyd.

Dr Shahrin Osman

Regional Head of Maritime Advisory, Director, Maritime Decarbonisation & Autonomy CoE DNV GL Maritime Region SEAPI

Dr. Shahrin Osman joined DNV GL Maritime Advisory Singapore unit in 2008 after more than 15 years working in Maersk and P&O Nedlloyd with regional line management responsibility covering procurement, operations, IT implementation and change management for Asia-Pacific countries. His interest in Industry Cluster analysis and international benchmarking, Strategy, Maritime Sustainability and Digitalisation have guided his work at DNV GL to serving internal and external clients within the maritime industry in Asia, Middle East, Europe and North America. He spends 8 years residing in Middle East from 2010 to 2018 before returning to Singapore to take up his current role.

Dr Shahrin has been a frequent guest speaker at industry conferences focussing on the topic of Maritime Cluster, Digitalisation and Sustainability in the maritime sector. He is the co-author for the 3rd and 4th edition of the influential “Leading Maritime Capitals of the World” 2017 and 2019 reports which benchmarks the world’s top maritime hub cities using nearly 50 objective and subjective indicators. In his current role, he is responsible for the maritime consulting business, R&D and innovation within the areas on decarbonisation in Shipping, as well as digitalisation initiatives for maritime eco-system in Singapore. He is also taking advisor role for digital start-ups and scale-ups. Dr Shahrin is concurrently the Director, Maritime Decarbonisation & Autonomy Centre of Excellence.

He has a Doctorate degree in Industry Cluster Strategy and Innovation Ecosystem, and MSc in Maritime Studies from NTU Singapore. Dr Shahrin has also attended the Executive programs at IMD on “Leading Digital Business Transformation” and “Future Technologies” at UC Berkeley.

Chris Peters

Chief Executive Officer,
Emirates Ship Investment Company LLC

Chris Peters Joined Eships in May 2009 and took over as CEO in March 2017, having previously been the CFO. Chris joined Eships from GE Commercial Finance and was previously at Nordea Bank, having almost 20 years banking experience, of which the last 13 years were directly in shipping/offshore finance. Chris attained an MBA from Cass (formerly City University) Business School London, majoring in Finance and Strategy. He has worked on multiple senior debt and project finance facilities as MLA and has overseen several shipping IPO facilities. Whilst at GE he was responsible for structuring and negotiating several equity acquisitions from a shipping fleet to a shipping bank. As CEO, Chris is directly responsible for the implementation of the shareholders strategy for the business ensuring not only the financial targets are met, but met, whilst upholding the groups commitment to safety and good corporate governance.

Mr. SV Anchan

Chairman,
Safesea Group

“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a Trail.”

Mr. S.V. Anchan is the Chairman of Safesea Group of Companies. He comes from an Indian family that has successfully strengthened its position in the field of shipping for three generations. For over 24 years he has been extensively involved in sale and purchase of vessels, chartering, ship management, finance, oil and bulk cargo, container cargo, port agency, arbitration, port management, liner services, NVOCC, contract of affreightment, VSA, marine insurance (P & I and H & M), feeder and coastal services.

He is a recognized leader in the global shipping industry and is a true entrepreneur and passionate shipping professional. Mr. Anchan is the brainchild behind the Safesea Group’s meteoric success and truly highlights its legacy i.e. “Shipping is our Religion”, matured over three generations in global shipping. Safesea Group was born in 2006 and under Mr. Anchan’s leadership the Group has enjoyed double digit growth and has expanded from USA to Canada, Europe, Iraq , UAE , India, Bangladesh & Singapore along with network offices in over 100 countries.

Khalid Y. Alhammad

Director, Fleet Management
BAHRI

A 28-year veteran of Saudi Aramco, Vela International Marine Ltd, and Bahri. Alhammad worked as an Operations Engineer for Saudi Aramco’s Terminal Department from 1997 till 2002. He left Aramco and joined Vela as Site Inspector, then Site Manager for Vela’s Shipbuilding Department working on the building of 4 MR Tankers and 10 VLCC’s in South Korea between 2004 and 2010. In 2011 moved back to Vela’s office in Dubai as Technical Manager then Fleet Manager until the merger with Bahri in 2014. At Bahri, Alhammad moved up the ranks to the current position of Director, Fleet Management overseeing a fleet of 87 vessels including 41 VLCC’s.

Alhammad holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical & electronics engineering from Oregon State University.

Mr. Ali Shehab Ahmad

CEO,
Kuwait Oil Tanker Company

Mr. Ali Shehab Ahmad is the Deputy CEO of Kuwait Oil Tanker Company (KOTC), the maritime transportation arm of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC). In his current role, he oversees KOTC’s fleet operations, Marine Agency Branch and the LPG Filling Branch that supplies LPG to the whole of Kuwait.

Prior to assuming the Dty. CEO role in mid-2013, Mr. Ali Shehab successfully managed KOTC’s multi-billion dollar Fleet New Building Program that aims to expand KOTC’s tanker fleet to match KPC’s 2030 Strategic vision of 4 million barrels per day and also induct modern environment-friendly technologies on board all the KOTC vessels.

Said Al Maawali

CEO,
Oman Shipping Company & Oman Dry Dock Company

Said Al Maawali is the CEO of Oman Shipping Company (offering world-class, reliable and efficient shipping solutions) and Oman Dry Dock Company (a major yard in the world and an integral part of the Omani government diversification program).

Prior to that Said led the Oman Tank Terminal Company the first large scale crude oil commercial terminal in Oman. Said has also worked is PDO, OXY, Sohar Aluminum and Oman Oil.

Said has also served in several boards as a director including Sohar Aluminum, Vale Oman, Oman India Fertilizer Company, Oman Aluminum Rolling Company Sohar Industrial Port. Said has extensive experience in the Oil and Gas, Metals, Manufacturing, and investment industries

Said has received an Engineering Degree from the Imperial College.

Eng. Ahmed Shareef Al Khoori

DG of The Federal Transport Authority Land and Maritime (FTA)

With his Engineering back ground and diversified experiences due to long serving in different government positions and active participation in areas such as urban planning, city management, development programming, development control, municipal services, municipal codes and regulations and project management. Some of his outstanding achievements are establishing an advanced digital mapping and GIS in Al Ain, Al Ain Master Planning 2000 and 2015, Al Ain Computerized Data Management System, as well as Abu Dhabi International Building Codes, and Abu Dhabi Real Estate Regulations.

To mention some of the key positions, he worked as DG of Al Ain Town Planning, Undersecretary of Al AIn Municipality, Undersecretary of AbuDhabi Department of Municipal Affairs and Chairman of Abu Dhabi General Service Company (Musanada).

Mr. Clive Woodbridge

Editor,
The Maritime Standard

A well-respected freelance journalist Clive Woodbridge has been writing about shipping, ports and logistics related issues since 1982.

For more than 30 years he has contributed to some of the leading publications in the industry, including Lloyds List, Seatrade, Cargo Systems, Container Management and Containerisation International, and has particular expertise in the shipping and maritime sectors in the Middle East.

Mr. Dhruv Kotak

Managing Director,

Dhruv Kotak is the Managing Director of the J M BAXI GROUP of companies – a diversified business group involved in shipping & logistics. The Group has 104 years of Maritime experience and has, over the years, grown to be a truly global player with its customers spread across 55 countries, and offices in over 63 cities across India and the world.

Dhruv is a fourth-generation entrepreneur, he joined the business when he was 15, and has worked his way up. A quick learner with an astute business sense, Dhruv has been pivotal in ensuring that the J M BAXI GROUP stays ahead of its peers and is an innovator in the Maritime and logistics market. He has been instrumental in making J M BAXI GROUP a truly global organisation as also an acknowledged “Thought- Leader” in the Indian Maritime domain.

Richard Briggs

Vice Chairman,
Emirates Maritime Arbitration Center

Executive Partner at law firm Hadef & Partners, Richard Briggs is a recognised leader in commercial dispute resolution in the UAE and has practised contentious business law in the UAE for most of his career. His areas of specialisation are in the litigation and arbitration fields, particularly with reference to maritime, trade and insurance law in the United Arab Emirates and the Middle East area.

Prior to working at Hadef, Mr Briggs trained with Clifford Chance in London and Dubai, later joining another UAE law firm as a partner. He graduated from the University of Warwick (LLB) and the College of Law, Guildford (United Kingdom). He is a member of the Law Society and a Practicing Solicitor of the Supreme Court of England and Wales. He is also a member of the International Bar Association and World Jurist Association. Richard is the ICC FraudNet member for the UAE, Middle East Regional Coordinator for the Inter-Pacific Bar Association and former Vice Chair of the IBA Maritime Committee.

Abdulla Bin Damithan

Chief Commercial Officer
UAE Region

Abdulla Bin Damithan has been with DP World since 2001. He was appointed as Chief Commercial Officer for DP World – UAE Region in 2017. Abdulla is responsible for all revenue generation activities, products and services offered across the portfolio including Ports & Terminals, Parks & Zones and Trade Enablement solutions.

Abdulla is a recognised leader in the maritime & logistics landscape within the Middle East with commercial success across the maritime & logistics industries. His focus on innovation and customer centricity have been the core of his commercial strategy. Abdulla sits on the Board of a number of DP World Ports & Terminals globally and also is an independent director in logistics ventures.

A proud Emirati national, Abdulla has a Bachelors in Business from the United States and a Graduate Diploma in Maritime & Port Management from the National University of Singapore. He has also completed the Dubai Leaders Program and leadership courses at the London Business School.

Angus R Frew

Secretary General & CEO
BIMCO

Angus Frew has served as Secretary General & CEO of BIMCO since 2013. BIMCO is the world’s largest international shipping association established in 1905 with 1,900 members in over 120 countries.

Angus was a non-executive director of Global Ship Lease Inc, a containership owning company publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange. He was appointed in 2008 and resigned in 2018 on the completion of its merger with Poseidon Containers.

Angus served as the CEO of the UK Chamber of Shipping from 2009 to 2013. The UK Chamber was established in 1878 and is the trade association for the UK shipping industry working with Government and international organisations to champion and protect the industry on behalf of its members. He designed and delivered a strategy that stabilised the finances and rejuvenated the association.

Angus served from 2003 to 2008 as President & CEO of GE SeaCo, a joint venture between General Electric and Sea Containers Ltd, and a leading international lessor of marine containers to shipping lines. Angus was the chairman of the Institute of International Container Lessors in 2004.

Prior to joining GE SeaCo in 2002, Angus held senior management positions in the international wine and spirits industry including six years in Tokyo, Japan and two years in Prague, Czech Republic.

Angus is a chemistry graduate of the University of Durham and qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1983.

Mr. JOHN M. RAMAGE

Mr. Ramage joined IRI’s London office in March 2002 and was appointed Managing Director in January 2003. He was instrumental in the establishment of offices in Hamburg (2007), Roosendaal (2008), Mumbai (2008), and Dubai (2009) where he continues to have a management role. In 2009 Mr. Ramage accepted the title of Director, Worldwide Business Operations whereby he was responsible for IRI’s global network of offices. A resident of the
United Kingdom, Mr. Ramage was appointed Chief Operating Officer (COO) of IRI in April of 2011 and continues to be responsible for operations of all worldwide offices, including IRI’s headquarters in Washington, DC/Reston. Mr. Ramage has an extensive background at sea having sailed with BP Tankers, Mobil Shipping, and Maersk Line. He spent 14 years in the ship management industry, predominantly in Hong Kong with Denholm Ship Management and Eurasia Ship Management where he rose to Vice President, managing a fleet of 50 vessels. Mr. Ramage holds a Master Mariners Certificate and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Edinburgh as well as a Bachelor of Science Honours in Nautical Studies from Liverpool Polytechnic.

Dr. Ruanthi De Silva

Ruanthi started her career in Sri Lanka at Ceylon Shipping Corporation, as a young Trainee and later was an integral part of the team that introduced containerization to Sri Lanka in the late 70s.
Since venturing out in 1981, she has lived and worked in Singapore, Paris, Australia and Hong Kong whilst also traveling to over 25 countries on assignment. She has worked for some of the world’s best maritime companies, such as Neptune Orient Lines, Hapag Llloyd, P&O NedLloyd, Sea Consortium, Samudera, Thomson Clark and Inchcape Shipping Services, where she has held Senior Management and Consultancy positions.
Her immediate past employment was as Global Director of Supply Chain Management (SCM) at Bernhard Schulte Ship Management (BSM) Group which manages over 650 ships operating from over 23 offices around the world. She enjoyed the rare honor of being invited to be the Godmother to one of the Schulte ships.
Currently she runs her own Consultancy company “SCM-PLUS” based in Hong Kong, Singapore and Sri Lanka specializing in Cost Containment and Control through Supply Chain Management, Procurement, Contract Negotiations, Business Process Reengineering and Human Capital Optimization.
Ruanthi holds a Doctorate from the University of Newcastle in Australia where her thesis was on the topic of Management of Intellectual Capital and its impact on high human capital turnover industries, with specific focus on the retention of Seafarers. She also holds an MBA from the University of Hull in UK, and has studied Finance and accounting with the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants of UK where she gained Fellow membership.
Ruanthi is also a Non-Executive Director of Odel Plc. Sri Lanka and Zesta Tea Ceylon Limited Hong Kong.
Ruanthi is married, and as a MOTHER of 2 kids, she firmly believes in a balanced approach to career and life style.

Mr. Sanjeev Sharma

Capt. Sanjeev Sharma joined Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement- Mumbai in July 2013, and took office of ‘Managing Director’ as from 01 st January 2015.
Capt. Sanjeev Sharma has more than 32 years’ experience in shipping, ship-management, business development, technical operations & human resource development. He started his sea career in 1983 after completing pre-sea training from India’s most prestigious nautical training ship ‘T.S. Rajendra’. He sailed on-board various ocean-going vessels of which last 5 years were with BSM- Hong Kong (called Eurasia then). After commanding four large ocean-going vessels, in October 1999, he moved to shore assignments by joining Meiji Shipping – Tokyo.
After a stint of 3 years in a middle management role at Tokyo, he was transferred to Singapore as General Manager of Meiji Shipping’s Shipmanagement outfit, ‘Neom Maritime (Singapore) Pte Ltd’. He continued with Neom Maritime for next 11 years, rising to the position of Chief Operating Officer,before returning to India in 2013.
Capt. Sanjeev Sharma is an Indian national & a Master Mariner. He is also a life member & on the
panel of “Indian council of Arbitration” as a shipping expert.

Mr. Richard Briggs

Richard Briggs
Vice Chairman, Emirates Maritime Arbitration Center
Executive Partner at law firm Hadef & Partners, Richard Briggs is a recognised leader in commercial dispute resolution in the UAE and has practised contentious business law in the UAE for most of his career. His areas of specialisation are in the litigation and arbitration fields, particularly with reference to maritime, trade and insurance law in the United Arab Emirates and the Middle East area.

Prior to working at Hadef, Mr Briggs trained with Clifford Chance in London and Dubai, later joining another UAE law firm as a partner. He graduated from the University of Warwick (LLB) and the College of Law, Guildford (United Kingdom). He is a member of the Law Society and a Practicing Solicitor of the Supreme Court of England and Wales. He is also a member of the International Bar Association and World Jurist Association. Richard is the ICC FraudNet member for the UAE, Middle East Regional Coordinator for the Inter-Pacific Bar Association and former Vice Chair of the IBA Maritime Committee.

Dr. Ruanthi De Silva

Ruanthi started her career in Sri Lanka at Ceylon Shipping Corporation, as a young Trainee and later was an integral part of the team that introduced containerization to Sri Lanka in the late 70s.

Since venturing out in 1981, she has lived and worked in Singapore, Paris, Australia and Hong Kong whilst also traveling to over 25 countries on assignment. She has worked for some of the world’s best maritime companies, such as Neptune Orient Lines, Hapag Llloyd, P&O NedLloyd, Sea Consortium, Samudera, Thomson Clark and Inchcape Shipping Services, where she has held Senior Management and Consultancy positions.

Her immediate past employment was as Global Director of Supply Chain Management (SCM) at Bernhard Schulte Ship Management (BSM) Group which manages over 650 ships operating from over 23 offices around the world. She enjoyed the rare honor of being invited to be the Godmother to one of the Schulte ships.
Currently she runs her own Consultancy company “SCM-PLUS” based in Hong Kong, Singapore and Sri Lanka specializing in Cost Containment and Control through Supply Chain Management, Procurement, Contract Negotiations, Business Process Reengineering and Human Capital Optimization.
Ruanthi holds a Doctorate from the University of Newcastle in Australia where her thesis was on the topic of Management of Intellectual Capital and its impact on high human capital turnover industries, with specific focus on the retention of Seafarers. She also holds an MBA from the University of Hull in UK, and has studied Finance and accounting with the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants of UK where she gained Fellow membership.
Ruanthi is also a Non-Executive Director of Odel Plc. Sri Lanka and Zesta Tea Ceylon Limited Hong Kong.
Ruanthi is married, and as a MOTHER of 2 kids, she firmly believes in a balanced approach to career and life style.

Mr. Rajiv Agarwal

MD & CEO,
Essar Ports Ltd.

Mr. Rajiv Agarwal is the CEO and Managing Director of Essar Ports Ltd, which is one of the largest private sector port companies in India by capacity and throughput. Mr. Agarwal is a Chartered Accountant with over 30 years of experience and has held various leadership positions in industries like Ports, Shipping, Telecom, Retail and Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO).

He became MD and CEO of Essar Shipping, Ports & Logistics Limited in 2010 and under him the Ports Business of Essar has grown manifold increasing Port Capacity in India alone from 46 MMTPA in FY10 to 100 MMTPA as on date with plans to increase to 110 MMTPA in 2019. Essar Ports has India’s trophy infrastructure asset providing all the characteristics of a large, long-term, stable and dominant infrastructure business. Diversifying customer profile is key centric to expansion strategy of Essar Ports with enhanced volumes of third party cargo. Under his leadership the third party cargo share is expected to increase from negligible to more than ~35% in short term. Company has expanded across strategic locations on both east & west coast of India contributing to the growth of the sector through state of the art mechanized facilities. Recently under his astute leadership the company also saw successful divestment of the Vadinar Oil Terminal (58 MMTPA capacity).

Mr. Ian Edwards

Area Manager, Middle East & Africa
DNV GL Maritime

Ian Edwards is a naval architect with an international career in the maritime and offshore industry spanning more than 20 years.

Ian holds a Master of Engineering in Ship Science from the University of Southampton and spent the first 10 years of his career working for ship owners in Norway and the Middle East, covering both operations and newbuildings.

He joined DNV GL in Norway in 2006 where he worked within plan approval for ship and offshore structures. Prior to moving to Dubai to take on his current role, Ian spent 7 years in South Korea leading DNV GL’s plan approval unit.

Mr. Ross Thompson

Chief – Commercial and Strategy Officer,
Abu Dhabi Ports

Ross joined Abu Dhabi Ports in 2016 as Vice President of Commercial and Business Development in the company’s Ports Unit. In that role, Ross was responsible for the Sales, Business Development and Customer Service departments. In January 2017 Ross was appointed Acting Chief Commercial and Strategy Officer, responsible for the functions of Corporate Commercial and Strategy, Quality and Excellence, as well as Business Process and Business Intelligence.

Over the past 16 years, Ross has been specialising in leading and managing sales revenue, commercial process and commercial strategy across multiple sites and market sectors having worked for leading international companies in the industry such as the Peel Ports Group and American President Lines (APL).

Mr. Dheeraj Bhatia

Senior Managing Director,
Middle East, ISC and Africa, Hapag Lloyd

Dheeraj Bhatia is the current Senior Managing Director, Region Middle East for Hapag Lloyd
Middle East based in Dubai.

Prior to this Dheeraj assumed the position of Managing Director Area ISC in June 2015 after the merger of Hapag-Lloyd and CSAV. Previously,
he held various management positions at CSAV. After joining CSAV in 2003, Dheeraj held senior positions in Asia Regional Operations until 2007, when he was appointed as the Line Manager for the Asia-Europe Trades. In 2008, he was nominated as the President of the India Agency for CSAV Group and Norasia Container Lines. In 2011, he became the Senior Vice President ISC – Middle East Region. In 2013, Dheeraj moved to the United States and continued his career in New York as President Region North America, Central America and Caribbean Islands.

Dheeraj’s entrepreneurial traits have led him to initiate and execute changes in the business strategy to achieve profitability, improve customer perception and cost efficiency.

Dheeraj is a Master Mariner by profession and a trained Pilot. He has a 12-year sailing and piloting career before he came ashore in 2003. He also holds various Chairman and Directorships at various Hapag Lloyd entities.

Capt. Abdulkareem Al Masabi

CEO
ADNOC Logistics & Services

Capt. Abdulkareem Al Masabi has been leading ADNOC Logistics & Services since 2018, where he has been spearheading its transformation and growth. The company was formed in 2017, from the consolidation of three ADNOC subsidiaries.

Capt. Abdulkareem has extensive experience in leadership roles within the maritime industry. Previously he held the position of Executive Vice President, Ports Unit at Abu Dhabi Ports, with responsibility for the day-to-day operational activities across all of Abu Dhabi Ports’ facilities. And prior to this he was Vice President at Khalifa Port, with the port being named Port of the Year in 2014 and 2015 during his tenure, which first began with Abu Dhabi Ports in 2009, when he joined as Senior Operations Manager.

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