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| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Holding company |
| Founded | 1848 |
| Headquarters | Oslo, Norway |
Key people | Anette S. Olsen (CEO) |
| Website | www |
Fred. Olsen & Co. is a holding company based in Oslo, Norway. The company was founded as a shipping firm by Petter Olsen in 1848. Today the company manages the Olsen family's interests in a variety of sectors including logistics, energy and consumer goods.
The company was founded by Petter Olsen (1821–1899) in 1848 and, by his death, the company had 16 ships with offices in Hvitsten. Petter's son Thomas Fredrik "Fred" Olsen (1857–1933) or Fred. Olsen, whom the company is named after, took the company from a small business with a few boats into a powerful multinational shipping and shipbuilding business. He had a vision of providing high-quality service on a network of lines, at first domestically and, afterwards, internationally. To do this required steamships, of which the first was acquired in 1897. By 1914, the first motor ship was put in use on the South America line. During World War I 23 of the company's 44 ships sank.
After the first Fred. Olsen's death, his sons Rudolf Olsen and Thomas Fredrik Olsen took over the company. During their leadership, the company expanded, even entering the aviation business with its own airline Fred. Olsen Flyselskap in addition to later partial ownerships of Det Norske Luftfartselskap, Scandinavian Airlines System, Widerøe, and Sterling Airlines. During World War II, the company's ships were in Allied service, though 28 were lost – about half the fleet. Rudolf died in 1951 and Thomas suffered ill health from 1955, eventually dying in 1969.
Thomas's son, also named Fred. Olsen (born 1 January 1929), is now in control of the company, after becoming director in 1955. In the early 1970s, Fred. Olsen entered the offshore business, with Dolphin drilling rigs and part of Saga Petroleum. The Saga shares were sold in 1991 while Dolphin is now part of Fred. Olsen Energy. Fred. Olsen also had a major share in the construction and engineering company Aker and currently owns Timex Corporation.
The company has also periodically entered the tanking business, operating a total of 40 ships since 1920. In 1973, it sold its tanking interests but reentered the industry again in 1986, creating the publicly listed company First Olsen Tankers in 1993 that was repurchased in 1999. Fred. Olsen Renewables has been involved in wind power since 1997 with wind farms in Norway, Sweden, Ireland and the United Kingdom. In 1980, it was involved in Nimslo, a company making 3D cameras, which later went bankrupt.
Fred. Olsen is today owned by Anette S. Olsen, the fifth generation of the family and daughter of Fred. Olsen. She took over ownership of Fred. Olsen & Co. in 1995 and has since been CEO, though Fred. Olsen has remained Chairman.
At the end of 2008, Fred. Olsen sold its part of Comarit and is no longer a stockholder of the Moroccan passenger carrier.
Harland & Wolff is a British shipbuilding and fabrication company headquartered in London with sites in Belfast, Arnish, Appledore and Methil. It specialises in ship repair, shipbuilding and offshore construction. Harland & Wolff is famous for having built the majority of the ocean liners for the White Star Line, including Olympic-class trio – RMS Olympic, RMS Titanic and HMHS Britannic. Outside of White Star Line, other ships that have been built include the Royal Navy's HMS Belfast; Royal Mail Line's Andes; Shaw, Savill & Albion's Southern Cross; Union-Castle's RMS Pendennis Castle; P&O's Canberra; and Hamburg-America's SS Amerika of 1905. Harland and Wolff's official history, Shipbuilders to the World, was published in 1986.
Aker Solutions ASA engineers and builds energy infrastructure while providing a range of products and consultancy services to low-carbon and renewable energy projects. Based in Oslo, the company's critical offerings to the energy industry include the systems and services required to extract oil and gas, build wind-to-grid infrastructure and engineer CO2 capture and sequestration.
Petter Halfdan Rudolf Fredrik Olsen is a Norwegian businessman, billionaire and member of the Olsen shipping family, who own Fred. Olsen & Co. He is the younger brother of the current leader of the company, Fredrik Olsen. Petter Olsen formerly owned one of the four versions of Edvard Munch's The Scream (1895), one of the world's most iconic works of art. The older brother, Fredrik Olsen, had been involved in a legal process against his younger brother concerning The Scream and other Munch works that had been collected by their father, Thomas Fredrik Olsen. According to the will of their mother, Henriette, the collection was to be left to the younger son. Fredrik Olsen disputed the will but lost the case in the Oslo District Court in 2001. Petter Olsen's version of The Scream was sold on 2 May 2012, selling for an auction record price of US$119.9 million, including fees and commission. Petter Olsen sold the painting to raise funds to build a museum in Hvitsten, Norway, where Munch once owned property and near where Olsen has an estate, to house the rest of his father's collection.
Moby Zazà is a ferry operated by Moby Lines between Nice and Bastia. Until 2015 she was MS Wind Perfection, an accommodation ship owned and operated by C-bed. She was built in 1982 as MS Olau Britannia by Weser Seebeckswerft in Bremerhaven for Olau Line, who used her on Sheerness—Vlissingen service. In 1990 she was sold to Fred. Olsen Lines and renamed MS Bayard for services between Norway and Denmark. In 1991 Fred. Olsen Lines was sold to Color Line and the Bayard passed under their ownership under the name MS Christian IV. In 2008, she was sold to Stella Lines and renamed MS Julia for service between Helsinki and St. Petersburg. This was a failure and after just two months the Julia was laid up. In 2009, she was sold to Fastnet Line and entered service on their Swansea—Cork route in 2010, retaining her earlier name.
Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines is a UK-based, Norwegian-owned cruise shipping line with four cruise ships. The company is owned by Bonheur and Ganger Rolf and is headquartered in Ipswich, Suffolk, in the United Kingdom. The company is part of the Fred. Olsen Group.
BW Group is a maritime company involved in shipping, floating gas infrastructure and deep-water oil & gas production. The company has over 350 vessels managed by an international team of over 7000 staff worldwide. The group was founded by Sir Yue-Kong Pao in Hong Kong in 1955 as World-Wide Shipping. In 2003, the company acquired Bergesen d.y. ASA, Norway's largest shipping company, which was founded in 1935 by Sigval Bergesen the Younger. In 2005, the business was re-branded as BW. With its LNG and LPG fleets combined, BW Group owns and operates the world's largest gas shipping fleet of more than 115 gas vessels, including four FSRUs. Hafnia, a member of the BW Group, operates the world's largest fleet of oil product tankers, and BW Offshore comprises the second largest number of floating oil and gas production units (FPSOs). BW's controlled fleet of over 350 ships also includes crude oil supertankers and dry bulk carriers.
Dolphin Drilling Holdings Limited is an offshore drilling rig company headquartered in Aberdeen, Scotland, United Kingdom with its main subsidiary Dolphin Drilling AS located in Sandnes, Norway. Until 2019, Dolphin Drilling had its headquarters in Oslo, Norway.
Bonheur ASA is a publicly traded Norwegian holding company headquartered in Oslo. The company is listed on Oslo Stock Exchange and has interests in the energy, real estate, shipping and media sectors.
Ganger Rolf ASA was a Norwegian holding company for the Olsen family. The company was listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange and had ownership positions in numerous companies primarily within the energy and shipping sectors, but also other areas such as real estate and mass media. All investments were made 50/50 with Bonheur. Bonheur is in turn controlled by Fred. Olsen & Co., a company wholly owned by Anette S. Olsen. Ganger Rolf owned 19.51% of Bonheur.
Thomas Fredrik Olsen or Fred Olsen is a Norwegian shipping magnate and Chairman of the companies in the Fred. Olsen & Co. company. He is the fourth generation running the Fred. Olsen Group, founded by his great grandfather Petter Olsen and named after his grandfather Thomas Fredrik Olsen. Though he remains the chairman of the companies, ownership and CEO functions are retained by his daughter Anette S. Olsen. In addition to his jobs within the Fred. Olsen group he was for a period also chairman of the Aker Group.
Det Norske Luftfartselskap A/S or DNL, trading internationally as Norwegian Air Lines, was an airline and flag carrier of Norway. Founded in 1927, it operated domestic and international routes from 1935 to 1941 and from 1946 to 1951. It became one of the three founders of Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) and became one of its three holding companies from 1951, with a 28% stake and listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange. DNL was renamed SAS Norge ASA in 1996 and was merged in 2001 to create the SAS Group.
Fred. Olsen Production is a Norwegian offshore floating production petroleum company. Founded in 2004, the company has its headquarters in Oslo, Norway and was listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange from May 11, 2007 until January 20, 2014. The company's largest owners are Bonheur and Ganger Rolf through First Olsen, owning 61.5% of the company. The companies are controlled by the Olsen family. The firm has offices in Oslo; Houston, United States; Singapore; and Port Harcourt, Nigeria.
A/S Fred. Olsens Flyselskap (FOF), trading internationally as Fred. Olsen Airtransport, was a Norwegian charter airline which operated between 1946 and 1997, largely operating cargo aircraft. Based at Oslo Airport, Fornebu, it was created as a spin-off of Norwegian Air Lines and was part of Fred. Olsen & Co., which owned it through its subsidiaries Ganger Rolf and Bonheur.
Ole Martin Siem was a Norwegian businessman and World War II resistance member.
Nordic Air A/S was a Norwegian cargo airline based at Sandefjord Airport, Torp. It operated from 1970 to 1973 with a Douglas DC-4, later replaced with two Lockheed L-188 Electra. The airline was not allowed to fly scheduled routes, and relied on charter flights. The most common transport was fish, from Northern Norway, Iceland and the Faroe Islands. The company was bought and merged into Fred Olsen Air Transport in 1973, after Nordic Air had failed to receive permission for its Nordic Express scheduled flights.
Thomas Fredrik Olsen (1897–1969) was a Norwegian ship-owner. Son of Fredrik Olsen and born in Hvitsten, he worked in the family company Fred. Olsen & Co. from 1920. He held a board position in a range of companies, including Det Norske Luftfartselskap and Scandinavian Airlines System. He is the father of shipping magnate Fred. Olsen.
Rudolf Fredrik Olsen was a Norwegian shipping magnate and Chairman of Fred. Olsen & Co.
Thomas Fredrik Olsen was a Norwegian businessman and ship owner of Fred. Olsen & Co.
DNV is an international accredited registrar and classification society headquartered in Høvik, Norway. The company currently has about 12,000 employees and 350 offices operating in more than 100 countries, and provides services for several industries including maritime, oil and gas, renewable energy, electrification, food and beverage, and healthcare. DNV GL was created in 2013 as a result of a merger between two leading organizations in the field — Det Norske Veritas (Norway) and Germanischer Lloyd (Germany). In 2021, DNV GL changed its name to DNV, while retaining its post-merger structure.
Timex Group B.V., or Timex Group, is an American - Dutch holding company headquartered in Hoofddorp, the Netherlands and Middlebury, Connecticut. It is the corporate parent of several global watchmaking companies including Timex Group USA, Inc., TMX Philippines, Inc., and Timex Group India Ltd.
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