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Hapag-Lloyd setting up terminals division and appoints CEO

German container line Hapag-Lloyd is establishing a new terminal division and appointing Dheeraj Bhatia as its CEO.

Michele Labrut, Americas Correspondent

September 19, 2023

1 Min Read
hapag lloyd new terminals ceo[49]
Photo: Hapag-Lloyd

The line’s terminal infrastructure will be pooled under Rotterdam-based Hapag-Lloyd Terminal Holding. The Supervisory Board of Hapag-Lloyd has appointed Dheeraj Bhatia to the company’s Executive Board effective 1 January 2024 and he will also become CEO of the new division.

Bhatia will be the first Indian national as well as the fifth member of the Executive Board – alongside CEO Rolf Habben Jansen, CIO/CHRO Donya-Florence Amer, CFO/CPO Mark Frese and COO Dr Maximilian Rothkopf.

Dheeraj Bhatia has more than 20 years of experience in the container shipping business. During this time, he has held several international management positions, including at Norasia Container Lines Limited and CSAV. In 2014, Bhatia joined Hapag-Lloyd as Managing Director and initially headed Area India.

Since 2018, he has been based in Dubai and serving as Senior Managing Director of Region Middle East. At the same time, he has been a member of Hapag-Lloyd’s Executive Committee.

“With Dheeraj Bhatia’s appointment, we are gaining a proven expert in container shipping for the Executive Board of Hapag-Lloyd AG. Thanks to his international experience, the Supervisory Board is firmly convinced that the development, expansion, and integration of our terminal portfolio will be in the best of hands,” said Michael Behrendt, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Hapag-Lloyd.

Related:Hapag-Lloyd excluded from HMM bidding process: reports

Hapag-Lloyd follows the top three container lines MSC, Maersk and CMA CGM in setting up a separate terminals business.

About the Author

Michele Labrut

Americas Correspondent

Michèle Labrut is a long-time Panama resident, a journalist and correspondent, and has continuously covered the maritime sector of Central & Latin America.

Michèle first came to Panama as a press attaché to the French Embassy and then returned to the isthmus as a foreign correspondent in the 1980s.

Author of Seatrade Maritime's annual Panama Maritime Review magazine and of several books, Michèle also wrote for Time magazine, The Miami Herald, NBC News and the Economist Intelligence Unit. She has also collaborated in making several documentaries for the BBC and European and U.S. television networks.

Michèle's profession necessitates a profound knowledge of the country, but her acumen is not from necessity alone, but a genuine passion for Panama.

In 2012 she was awarded the Order of Merit (Knight grade) by the French Government for her services to international journalism and in 2021 the upgrade to Chevalier grade.

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