UASC announces expansion plans, new Executive Appointments

UASC announced two senior executive appointments to further position the company for its next phase of growth. The major transformation and investment program which is underway, calls for a new operating model to support the business. The appointments provide the depth and breadth to UASC's Executive Management team to deliver on ambitious growth plans.

"UASC is preparing for significant changes on the back of new capacity coming into service with a major program of new vessel acquisition", said Jorn Hinge, UASC President and CEO. "We are repositioning our offering to the market, recapitalizing our business and optimizing our trades. We are structuring our executive talent so that we can leverage their exceptional professional capabilities to deliver long-term value to our shareholders".

In line with our ambitious growth plans, the UASC Board of Directors has decided to appoint Lars Christiansen as Chief Trade Officer of UASC and Uffe Østergaard as Chief Commercial Officer of UASC.

The existing executive management team of Waleed Al Dawood as Chief Operating Officer, Basil Al-Zaid as Chief Financial Officer and Jorn Hinge as President and CEO will be complemented by these new senior colleagues providing a comprehensive leadership team to drive the business.

Waleed Al Dawood is a long standing member of UASC having joined over 30 years ago. Waleed has held a number of management positions including serving as Chief Technical Officer and as Vice President Middle East Region.

Basil Al-Zaid joined UASC in 2001 as Vice President Treasury. He has over 21 years of Managerial experience in Corporate Finance, Treasury and International Investments, including 14 years with financial institutions in Kuwait.

"I have worked side by side with Waleed Al Dawood and Basil Al-Zaid over the past number of years. Their vision and foresight has led to the transformation UASC is undergoing today", said Hinge. "Working together as a leadership team, strengthened by our new appointments, we will ensure that UASC continues successfully on its strategic path".

Lars Christiansen, a 7-year UASC veteran, has broad based experience and was until his appointment the Vice President Asia Region, responsible for all UASC activities in Asia. He also spent 20 years with A.P. Moller-Maersk and has served as Management Consultant and as Transport Director with IKEA on their Global Transportation Management Team.