One of the titans of global shipping, Dr Helmut Sohmen, passed away yesterday in Hong Kong at the age of 85. The Austrian presided over one of the world’s largest shipping empires as chairman of World-Wide Shipping Group and later BW Group, before relinquishing the role to his son, Andreas Sohmen-Pao, 11 years ago.
Born in Austria in 1939, Sohmen studied law at the University of Vienna, Southern Methodist University, Northwestern University, and as a Fulbright Scholar at Wesleyan University.
Sohmen ran the shipowning giant after his father-in-law, Sir Y K Pao, had stepped down as founder of World-Wide Shipping. Pao had made World-Wide into one of the top names in shipping, but by the 1980s, it was facing hard times. Under Sohmen, World-Wide bounced back, buying out Norway’s Bergesen, rebranding as BW, and having a fleet larger than even in the heyday of the World-Wide founder.
Owners should not believe in linear projections based on historic precedent
During his career, he held many positions, including president of BIMCO, chairman of ITOPF, and chairman of the Hong Kong Shipowners Association, amongst others.
“More sectors of shipping have become commoditised,” he told Maritime CEO as he retired in November 2014, noting back then that one of the biggest changes in his tenure at the top was with shipyard capacity.
“What has changed significantly is world shipbuilding capacity and the resultant threat of permanent overtonnage,” Sohmen warned.
“Owners should not make too many assumptions or believe in linear projections based on historic precedent,” the veteran owner said as advice to his peers in one of his final shipping interviews.
