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Suggest pagesJohn Fredriksen
| John Fredriksen | |
|---|---|
 John Fredriksen in the center, Stelios Haji-Ioannou to the far left at a meeting in 1989. |
|
| Born | May 10, 1944 Oslo, Norway |
| Nationality | Cypriot |
| Ethnicity | Norwegian |
| Alma mater | High-school dropout |
| Occupation | Business magnate |
| Known for | Major ownership in companies engaged in Shipping, Offshore drilling and Seafood business |
| Net worth |  US$ 10.7 billion (2011)[1] |
John Fredriksen, (born 10 May 1944) is a Norwegian-born Cypriot oil tanker and shipping tycoon, owner of the world's largest oil tanker fleet, and was Norway's richest man until he chose to abandon his Norwegian citizenship and take up a Cypriot passport.[2] Norwegian magazine E24 listed Fredriksen in 2011 with a net worth of NOK 59,7 billion ($10.7 billion USD).[3] Through his investment companies Hemen Holdings and Meisha, Fredriksen controls the companies Frontline and Golar LNG from London.
He also has major interests in the offshore driller SeaDrill, the fish farming company Marine Harvest the dry bulk company Golden Ocean Group, and supply vessel company Deep Sea Supply. Fredriksen's Frontline in 2010-11 owned 9,6% of another large tanker company Overseas Shipholding Group, but divested itself of this stake during 2011.[4]
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[edit] Biography
Born on Oslo's east side, Etterstad, the son of a welder, Fredriksen began as a trainee in a shipbroking company. At the age of 27 he started working for himself. Fredriksen made his fortune during the Iran-Iraq wars in the 1980s when his tankers picked up oil at great risk and huge profits. As described by his biographer, "he was the lifeline to the Ayatollah." He is now the world's largest tanker owner, with more than seventy oil tankers, and major interests in oil rigs and fish farming. His fleet is dominated by costly double-hulled, environmentally safer tankers.
Back in December 2005 rumours circulated of Fredriksen-controlled firm Seadrill bidding for Stavanger based rig company Smedvig, and since has been in a bidding war with U.S. company Noble Corporation. But it was announced in late January 2006 that Seadrill had bought more than 50 percent of Smedvig, and therefore gained control of the company (51.24 percent of the votes and 52.27 percent of the capital). Smedvig is valued at NOK 15 billion, and is Fredriksen's biggest ever deal. Noble Corp sold its stake in Smedvig to Seadrill in April 2009. Smedvig is now fully under Seadrill's control.[5]
On 7 June 2007 the British newspaper the Daily Mail reported that Fredriksen was interested in buying the Premiership football club Tottenham Hotspur. Prior to this Fredriksen has been majority owner of Vålerenga I.F. for many years.
[edit] Bunker investigation
In 1985 the Norwegian insurance company Gard got suspicious about losses of cargo from Fredriksen's tankers. A private investigation was initiated and a system for the use of heavy oil as bunker fuel was revealed.[6] The case was turned over to the Norwegian police and in June 1986 Fredriksen's offices in Oslo were searched and several of his nearest associates, and after a while also Fredriksen, were placed in detention while the case was investigated.[7]
After several years of argument's between the various lawyers the case were settled out of court. Fredriksen had to pay a fine of 2 million NOK[8] for risking his crew's life, in addition he had to pay the insurance company Gard an amount of over 800.000 USD.[9]
[edit] Fortune
He has two children, collects classic Norwegian art, and reportedly turned down an offer of $200m (£180m) from Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich for his Chelsea home. He also owns houses in Oslo, Cyprus, and Marbella. In 2006 John Fredriksen chose to abandon his Norwegian citizenship and is now a citizen of Cyprus.
The Sunday Times Rich List 2003 (published every April) ranked Fredriksen 66th (in Britain) with a worth of £475m, in their 2004 list he ranked 30th with £1,050m, and in 2005 ranked 16th with a fortune of £1,887m. Forbes magazine estimated his net worth at $10,700m, or #72 in their rich list, as of March 2011.
James Winchester, a veteran shipping analyst at Lazard Frères has said of him, "He's a modern-day Onassis. The tanker king. He landed squarely in the sweet spot of the tanker cycle, with the largest fleet of ships." In 2001 an article on Forbes.com described him as having "a tanker fleet bigger than anything Aristotle Onassis ever had."
[edit] Personal
- John Frederiksen is a widower and father of two children. He is a Vålerenga IF Fotball and Tranmere Rovers fan.
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.forbes.com/profile/john-fredriksen/
- ^ De Lange, Grete. Norway's richest man no longer (Aftenposten. May 11, 2006)
- ^ http://www.forbes.com/profile/john-fredriksen/
- ^ Bjørn Haugan, Johann D. Sundberg, Lars Magne Sunnanå: Flytter for døtrene ( E24. May 11, 2006) [1]
- ^ Nina Berglund Smedvig now fully under Fredriksen's control (Aftenposten; April 3, 2006
- ^ «For Oslo-advokatene ble Gisvolds reise slutten på den hemmelige etterforskningen. Man hadde nok, og dessuten var det nå bare et tidsspørsmål før Fredriksen fikk kjennskap til granskningen. Følgelig torde man ikke holde på lenger. Juristene anbefalte Gard å gå til politiet med sine mistanker.», fra Storeulv, side 106
- ^ «Samme morgen ble de seks arresterte fremstilt for Oslo forhørsrett. Siktelsen var grove oljetyverier og forsikringssvindel for cirka en million kroner.», fra Storeulv, side 125
- ^ «John Fredriksen måtte i 1990 godta en bot på to millioner kroner for å ha satt mannskapenes liv i fare ved å bruke olje fra lasten som drivstoff.», fra Storeulv, side 168
- ^ «Fredriksen aksepterte å betale Gard 800 000 dollar, pluss halvparten av den Marine Management-konto de hadde tatt beslag i.», fra Storeulv, side 160
[edit] Literature
- Hauge, Odd Harald and Gunnar Stavrum. Storeulv, en uautorisert biografi om John Fredriksen. Oslo: Gyldendal, 2005. ISBN 978-82-05-35346-6. Print.
