Board of Directors

Ludwig brings a wealth of experience to V., having built a distinguished career in the maritime industry. With many years of leadership experience across global markets, he has a proven track record of driving strategic growth and fostering operational excellence. Ludwig is currently Chairman of the Royal Belgian Shipowners’ Association (RBSA), a role he has held since 2016.

He previously served in key executive positions, including since 1991 as a Director of CMB, one of the oldest and biggest shipowning companies in Antwerp, and of Exmar since its listing in 2003. He is a member of the board of the Wah Kwong Shipping Group in Hong Kong, having previously been Managing Director from 1999 to 2004.

Appointed February 2025.

René has a wealth of experience from almost three decades in the global shipping industry. In 2012, he was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Topaz Energy & Marine, a position he held until the company’s successful divestment in 2019. He stepped down after completing the integration process in 2020, having successfully navigated the business through an unprecedented oil & gas environment, while transforming the company into a global leader. Earlier in his career he worked for the A.P. Moller-Maersk Group where he held a variety of executive positions in numerous countries including Chief Executive Officer of SVITZER, Asia, Middle East and Africa.

René graduated from the University of Southern Denmark and holds an Advanced Management Program Diploma from Harvard Business School. René sits on the Board of BW Offshore as an independent Non-Executive Board Director.

Appointed November 2020.

Graham was appointed as Chair of V.Group in November 2020, having been the company’s Chief Executive Officer since April 2019. He has held various senior executive roles across a career spanning five decades in the shipping industry. His executive roles saw him spend considerable career time with Maersk UK, Teekay Corporation, and GasLog Ltd.

Graham also held a number of positions as Director and Chairman of a variety of committees and organisations. Prior to joining V.Group, Graham was a company Director at GasLog Ltd, while also a dedicated member of the HSSE Committee, and Chair of the Operations Executive Group.

As well as being a Master Mariner, Graham has undertaken various finance and leadership courses, and is a graduate of the Columbia Senior Executive Development Programme. Graham also holds directorial positions with GasLog Ltd, Seagull AS and Gastrade, and is Chairman of the ABS UK Advisory Committee. Graham was President of the UK Chamber of Shipping until February 2024.

Appointed November 2020.

Paul is Managing Partner of STAR Capital and part of their Investment team.

Paul joined STAR in 2001 from Credit Suisse. He sits on STAR’s Executive Board and Investment Committee and has over twenty years of international private equity experience. Paul has a Bachelor of Commerce (Hons) in Finance & Quantitative Analysis and is a member of the New Zealand Society of Investment Analysts.

Appointed September 2024.

Aditya is a Partner in the STAR Capital Investment team

Prior to joining STAR, Aditya worked with Morgan Stanley Private Equity, Princes Gate Investors and affiliates of the Soros funds. He has been involved with 16 successful transactions across multiple sectors in Europe. At STAR, he has led the fund’s investments in GSLS, Hawksford and V.Group. Aditya has a BSc (Hons) in Economics and Finance from the University of York, and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Appointed September 2024.

Piet is co-CEO of Ackermans & van Haaren, and co-Chairman of their executive committee.

After his studies for a law degree (KU Leuven – 1989), Piet Dejonghe obtained a postgraduate degree in management (KU Leuven – 1990) and an MBA (Insead – 1993). He worked as a lawyer for Loeff Claeys Verbeke (now A&O Shearman) and as a consultant for Boston Consulting Group. Piet joined Ackermans  & van Haaren in 1995.

Appointed September 2024.

Jens is Investment Director at Ackermans & van Haaren (AvH).

He has extensive experience as a Board member at both private and listed companies across Europe, the UK and India.

He obtained a Master in Civil Engineering from the University of Ghent (2005) and an MBA from Harvard Business School (2009).

Prior to AvH, Jens worked at McKinsey & Company as an associate partner.

Appointed September 2024.

Hector is a member of the Private Equity Partners group within BlackRock’s Equity Private Markets business. Based in London, he is responsible for origination, performing due diligence and monitoring private equity investments in Europe.

Hector earned a BA degree with Honours from Trinity College Dublin.

Appointed September 2024.

Petter joined V.Group from Eltel Group, a leading provider of technical services for power and communication networks, where he was Group CFO, based in Stockholm.

Prior to joining Eltel in 2017, Petter held a number of senior operations and finance roles in Wilhelmsen Holding ASA; initially combining roles as CFO and Deputy CEO of Wilhelmsen Maritime Service, then in 2010 becoming President of Wilhelmsen Technical Solutions. Petter has also held international senior finance roles with ASSA ABLOY, Boliden and Trelleborg Group.

Petter holds a diploma from INSEAD (Paris/Fontainebleau) on Strategy, Innovation & Leadership, and a BSc in Business Administration & Economics (Civilekonom) from the University of Gothenburg.

Appointed March 2020.