18 July 2019 – Global port
agency business, WaterFront Maritime Services (WaterFront) has today opened a
local agency office in Houston, Texas. The company, which is one of the world’s
largest port agency networks, says its Houston office has been established to
help charterers, owners, and operators to manage their risk in this
strategically important high-volume location.
WaterFront’s Houston office is managed by newly appointed Director
for North America Lars Westerberg, a port agency industry veteran who was
formerly
Regional Director Americas for Seven Seas and Managing Director of Wallem
Americas. Prior to these roles, Westerberg also served as Regional
Managing Director of Inchcape Shipping Services in North and Central America.
The team in WaterFront’s Houston office will attend vessels
directly from Corpus Christi to Lake Charles, including all terminals and all
facilities. The Houston office will also serve as the regional hub for
WaterFront in North, South and Central America including the Caribbean and is
linked to WaterFront’s existing regional hubs in Dubai and Kuala Lumpur to provide
24-hour coverage to its global client base.
Terry
Gidlow, Chief Executive Officer of WaterFront, commented:
“On a global basis we see how significant political developments,
evolving trade policies and rapid shifts in the supply and demand of raw
materials and bulk commodities are impacting traditional trade patterns.
Meaning our clients are faced with a whole new range of opportunities and
challenges in executing their day to day business. With the opening of our
Houston office we are able to bolster the presence we have in other major oil
& gas import/export and refining centres such as the Middle East and in
Asia.”
The WaterFront global network currently handles more than 45,000
port calls per year through a network of 483 offices in 93 countries worldwide.
Unlike other global agencies, Waterfront focuses on providing port and
husbandry services for vessels transporting coal, grains, iron ore, minor bulks
as well as crude oil, clean and dirty products, chemicals and gas. The company
also handles the husbandry requirements of 3rd party and in-house
ship managers.
WaterFront’s
Director for North America, Lars Westerberg, commented:
“By focusing on specific commodities, we can work with customers
operating in this region to add quantifiable value to their businesses. Our
work is all about understanding our clients business and their specific needs and then using our local
knowledge and relationships to assist them to mitigate their risk, turn their
vessels and cargoes around faster and save them money, while maintaining the
highest levels of safety and
compliance.”
Terry
Gidlow, chief executive officer of WaterFront, added:
“Lars and his team in Houston bring to the table decades of local experience and relationships in ports and terminals throughout Texas. The Regional Hub function of the Houston office also serves to give our clients in North and South America better access to our Global network.“
WaterFront
was established by leading regional ship agency businesses Sharaf Shipping
Agencies and Ben Line Agencies in 2016. WaterFront is headquartered in Dubai
with commercial offices in China, Singapore, Dubai, Norway and the USA. WaterFront
has strategic partnerships in the rest of North and South America with renowned
local partners such as ACGI on the west Coast of the US and Canada, UNIMAR in
Brazil and the Ultramar group in Spanish-speaking South America. For more
information about the organisation, visit www.waterfront-ms.com
