The World Shipping Council Board of Directors elected two Co-Chairs of the Board to succeed outgoing Board Chair Ron Widdows. The board also welcomed Matson Navigation and X-Press Feeders as new members to WSC.

Effective immediately, the WSC Board will be co-chaired by Rolf Habben Jansen, CEO of Hapag-Lloyd AG and Jeremy Nixon, CEO of ONE, serving for an initial two-year term. Ron Widdows, who has served as the WSC Chairman for over a decade, previously announced his intention to step down once his successor was elected by the newly expanded Board of Directors.

Rolf Habben Jansen, CEO of Hapag-Lloyd AG
Rolf Habben Jansen, CEO of Hapag-Lloyd AG

“The membership wants to acknowledge and thank Ron Widdows for his efforts as Chairman since 2008. The organization is now well established as a trusted partner with governments and others interested in international transportation,” said Rolf Habben Jansen.

“WSC today is the unified voice of liner shipping and covers a wide-range of industry topics, engaging with governments and organisations all over the world. We expect that to only expand as we head into the future, and WSC continues its work to shape the future growth of a socially responsible, environmentally sustainable, safe and secure shipping industry,” said Jeremy Nixon.

Jeremy Nixon, CEO of ONE
Jeremy Nixon, CEO of ONE

Carriers Matson Navigation and X-Press Feeders have joined the World Shipping Council as new members. US-based Matson Navigation is a leader in Pacific shipping since 1882, operating containerships and combination container and roll-on/roll-off ships. X-Press Feeders, based in Singapore, is an independent common carrier operating a fleet of more than 110 vessels covering many of the major global transhipment hubs. Both companies have elected to appoint their representatives to the board of directors. Effective immediately, Mr. Matt Cox, Matson’s Chairman & CEO and Mr. Tim Hartnoll, Executive Chairman of X-Press Feeders will join the WSC Board.

We are very pleased to welcome Matson and X-Press Feeders to WSC,” said WSC President & CEO John Butler. “Expanding our membership broadens our perspective when representing the liner sector and we look forward to participation from Matson and X-Press Feeders’ representatives.”