Shell, BP, SBM Offshore... Expected Strengthening of Business Competitiveness
Expansion of Offshore Renewable Energy Projects Centered on North America and Europe
Hanwha Ocean is aggressively recruiting foreign executives from client companies. Since these veterans have worked for decades at client companies, there is an expectation that they will secure business know-how, understand client needs, and strengthen sales competitiveness.
According to the industry on the 10th, Hanwha Ocean recently hired Bram van Kan, a director with 20 years of experience, as the head of engineering for the marine business division. This is the fourth time Hanwha Ocean has recruited a foreign executive.
Director van Kan worked for more than 13 years as an engineer at SBM Offshore, a Dutch marine equipment specialist company, and then at Engie, a multinational energy company headquartered in France, as well as Ocean Winds, a French-Portuguese joint offshore wind power specialist company. He will be responsible for engineering and marine plant-related businesses in Europe.
Director van Kan said, "I will contribute to Hanwha Ocean's successful provision of EPCI (Engineering, Procurement, Construction, and Installation) solutions in the marine energy industry." EPCI solutions refer to integrated services covering all stages of projects in the marine energy industry. Regarding the recruitment of Director van Kan, Hanwha Ocean stated, "He has extensive experience in the marine and renewable energy sectors and is expected to contribute to the marine business with strategic vision and expertise."
Since appointing Philip Levy, former president of SBM Offshore America, as head of the marine business division in April, Hanwha Ocean has been continuously recruiting foreign executives. In the same month, Claire Wright, former chief strategy officer at British oil company Shell, was appointed head of the European branch, and in May, Julie Fan Rose, a human resources manager from British Petroleum (BP), was hired as HR director of Hanwha Ocean's marine business division.
The background behind Hanwha Ocean's consecutive recruitment of foreign executives is aligned with its strategy to strengthen marine business centered on North America and Europe. The company's marine business division undertakes EPCIO (Engineering, Procurement, Construction, Installation, and Operation) projects for marine facilities such as FPSO (Floating Production Storage and Offloading) and FLNG (Floating Liquefied Natural Gas) as well as marine renewable energy-related businesses. Orders for oil field development or plant projects related to these businesses are mainly made and decided in the Americas or Europe. Hanwha Ocean changed its overseas sales policy, which was previously managed domestically, to place foreign executives in the Americas and Europe to directly grasp business conditions.
All the foreign executives recruited by Hanwha Ocean come from Hanwha Ocean's client companies. Unlike shipbuilding, where construction is key, in the marine business where local sales are crucial, recruiting executives from client companies is interpreted as a determination to systematically establish sales strategies and strengthen marine business in the Americas and Europe.
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