Ehrenreich takes up Safmarine post in Singapore

Ray Smuts FOUR very successful, happy and fruitful years in Cape Town end soon for Peter H. Ehrenreich, m.d. of Maersk South Africa, as he heads for Singapore on promotion - and a change in company brands - as Safmarine’s regional senior executive for the Far East and Oceania. Breaking the news to FTW last week, he admitted to an initial touch of apprehension at the prospect of working for a sister company with a different business culture after being a “Maersky” for precisely half of his 38 years. Ehrenreich takes over on September 1 from Alan Jones who has returned to focus on Africa from Safmarine’s base in the Mother City. Ehrenreich will be succeeded by fellow Dane, contemporary and good friend, Flemming Dalgaard, currently based in Beijing, China, on September 1. It was the challenge of growing Safmarine’s business in the Far East that acted as a catalyst for his decision to accept the offer. “What I find really exciting is that this is one area where Safmarine must grow because Maersk Sealand is already very big and it’s difficult for them to expand much more even though I am sure they will. “It is very important for the A.P.Moller - Maersk Group to grow both brands and especially for Safmarine in trades where it has not been a big player to date. This in particular relates to trades not involving Africa.” These, he says, include the Far East to the US, Europe/Far East, Far East/Oceania and intra Asia, where the line can perform a lot better in the future, as well as the Far East-Middle East - and this is where his focus will lie. Ehrenreich is no stranger to the Far East having travelled extensively during his four-and-a-half year tenure in Tokyo and one year in Singapore. He admits he will have to get to grips anew with the different business ethics and cultures of the 11-12-odd Far Eastern countries, Australia and New Zealand for which he will be responsible. Since coming to South Africa four years ago as Maersk’s g.m. for the Western Cape (he became m.d. the following year) Ehrenreich is gratified to note that Maersk currently holds about 13% or 14% of the total South African market of which around half has come about since his arrival.