Kristian Mørch to step down as Odfjell CEO

Kristian Mørch, Odfjell’s chief executive officer since 2015, has decided to resign once a successor is named to his leadership post. The board of the Norwegian chemical tanker operator has initiated a process to identify the next CEO and has engaged Russell Reynolds Associates in Oslo as an advisor in the process.

Mørch came to Odfjell from the position as partner and group CEO of Danish bulk carrier operator Clipper, and before that, from a career at Maersk, where he rose to become COO of Maersk Tankers. He was a member of the Odfjell board of directors from 2014 until he assumed the role of CEO on August 1, 2015. He is currently chair of Maersk Broker, vice-chair of J.Lauritzen, and board member of BW Epic Kosan.

“It has been a privilege to lead the highly professional and dedicated Odfjell team during the past seven years, and I am proud of what we have achieved during this turnaround period. Odfjell is today standing on a very strong competitive platform and is well-positioned to take advantage of the opportunities ahead of us, so it is now the right time for the company to identify who will be leading Odfjell into the future,” Mørch said.

Laurence Odfjell, chairman of the board, added: “Kristian has led Odfjell through seven intense years of transformation. Under his leadership, Odfjell has made significant progress and as a company, we are in a much better place today than we were in 2015. The Board would like to express our gratitude for his contributions over these years, and we value his commitment to ensuring an orderly process to find his successor.”