Meet our leadership team

Niels G. Stolt-Nielsen

Niels G. Stolt-Nielsen

Director and Chairman of the Board
Niels G. Stolt-Nielsen

Niels G. Stolt-Nielsen

Director and Chairman of the Board

Appointment

Mr Niels G. Stolt-Nielsen became Chairman of the Board in September 2023, and is a member of the Audit and Compensation Committees. He has been a Director of Stolt-Nielsen Limited since 1996.

Experience

Mr Stolt-Nielsen joined Stolt Tankers in 1990 in Greenwich, Connecticut, US. In 1994 he relocated to China to open and head Stolt-Nielsen Limited’s representative office in Shanghai. He was the President of Stolt Sea Farm from 1996 until 2000 when he became Chief Executive Officer of Stolt-Nielsen Limited, serving in this role until 2023. From September 2002 until March 2003, he also served as Interim Chief Executive Officer of Stolt Offshore S.A. Mr Stolt-Nielsen graduated from Hofstra University in 1990 with a BS degree in Business and Finance. He is a Norwegian citizen.

Other appointments

Mr Stolt-Nielsen is the Chairman of the Board of Avenir LNG and a Director of Golar LNG Ltd.

Janet Ashdown

Janet Ashdown

Independent Director
Janet Ashdown

Janet Ashdown

Independent Director

Appointment

Ms Janet Ashdown is an independent Board member and was appointed as a Director of Stolt-Nielsen Limited in April 2021. She is a member of the Audit and Compensation Committees.

Experience

Ms Ashdown is a highly experienced Independent Director and has served on the boards of four FTSE 250 companies. She joined BP plc in 1980 and led several large businesses as a senior executive during her 30 years with the company. In her last role with BP, Ms Ashdown was responsible for a £20bn network of fuel outlets across the UK. With experience of managing complex supply chain operations, Ms Ashdown also has a deep understanding of industrial distribution businesses and a strong interest in the energy transition, hydrogen and carbon capture, and the broader ESG agenda. Ms Ashdown holds a BSc in Engineering from Swansea University, UK and is a British citizen.

Other appointments

Ms Ashdown is Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Corporate Sustainability Committee and Remuneration Committee at RHI Magnesita N.V, Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Remuneration Committee at Victrex plc, and Senior Independent Director and Chair of the Sustainability and Governance Committee Nuclear Decommissioning Authority at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, UK.

Samuel Cooperman

Samuel Cooperman

Independent Director
Samuel Cooperman

Samuel Cooperman

Independent Director

Appointment

Mr Samuel Cooperman is an independent Board member. He served as Chairman of the Board of Directors from 2016 to September 2023. He has been a Director of Stolt-Nielsen Limited since 2008 and Chairman of the Audit Committee since 2009. He became the Chairman of the Compensation Committee in 2022.

Experience

Mr Cooperman joined Stolt-Nielsen in 1974 and held a number of senior management positions, including Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Stolt-Nielsen Transportation Group, before retiring from the Company in 2003. Mr Cooperman was a member of the Executive Committee of the International Chamber of Shipping until May 2010, and also served as Vice-Chairman for two years. He holds BS and MS degrees in Electrical Engineering from Columbia University and from the Graduate School at the University of Pennsylvania, respectively, and an MBA from Temple University. Mr Cooperman is a US citizen.

Other appointments

Mr Cooperman is the Chief Executive Officer of Cooperman Weiss Consulting LLC.

Jan Chr. Engelhardtsen

Jan Chr. Engelhardtsen

Independent Director
Jan Chr. Engelhardtsen

Jan Chr. Engelhardtsen

Independent Director

Appointment

Mr Jan Chr. Engelhardtsen is an independent Board member, having been appointed to the Board of Directors in March 2018. He is also a member of the Audit Committee.

Experience

Mr Engelhardtsen served as Chief Financial Officer of Stolt-Nielsen Limited for 26 years. He held several key positions during his career with the company, including President of Stolt Tank Containers, which saw him play an important role in our entry into this sector and in setting the foundation for what is a very successful business today. Mr Engelhardtsen also served as President of Stolthaven Terminals, Chief Financial Officer of Stolt Offshore S.A., and President and General Manager of Stolt-Nielsen Singapore Pte. Mr. Engelhardtsen holds an MBA from the Sloan School of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, as well as undergraduate degrees in Business Administration and Finance. He has dual citizenship of Norway and the US.

Other appointments

Mr Engelhardtsen is a Director of New York Cruise Lines, Inc.

Rolf Habben Jansen

Rolf Habben Jansen

Independent Director
Rolf Habben Jansen

Rolf Habben Jansen

Independent Director

Appointment

Mr Rolf Habben Jansen is an independent Board member and has served as a Director of Stolt-Nielsen Limited since December 2015.

Experience

Mr Habben Jansen began his career at Royal Nedlloyd before joining Danzas, the Swiss logistics firm, which merged with DHL in 1999. He was Head of Global Customer Solutions at DHL from 2006 until joining Damco as Chief Executive Officer in 2009, leaving in 2014 to join Hapag-Lloyd. He is a Dutch citizen and graduated from Rotterdam’s Erasmus University in 1991 with a degree in Economics.

Other appointments

Mr Habben Jansen is Chief Executive Officer of Hapag-Lloyd AG and Co-Chairman of the World Shipping Council.

Jacob B. Stolt-Nielsen

Jacob B. Stolt-Nielsen

Director

Appointment

Mr Jacob B. Stolt-Nielsen has served as a Director of Stolt-Nielsen Limited since 1995.

Experience

Mr Stolt-Nielsen joined the company in 1987 and served in various positions in Oslo, Singapore, Greenwich, Connecticut, Houston, Texas and London. He was President of Stolthaven Terminals from 1992 until 2000, when he founded and served as Chief Executive Officer of SeaSupplier Ltd. Mr Stolt-Nielsen was Executive Vice President of Stolt-Nielsen Limited from 2003 to 2005 and in 2012 founded Norterminal AS. He is also a founder of Hydrogen Source AS and Narvik Batteri AS. Mr Stolt-Nielsen graduated from Babson College in 1987 with a BS degree in Finance and Entrepreneurial studies. He is a Norwegian citizen.

Other appointments

Mr Stolt-Nielsen is Chief Executive Officer of Norterminal AS and is a board member of Stolt-Nielsen Holdings AS, SN Terminal AS, Hydrogen Source AS, New York Cruise Lines, Inc and Narvik Batteri AS.

Tor Olav Trøim

Tor Olav Trøim

Independent Director
Tor Olav Trøim

Tor Olav Trøim

Independent Director

Appointment

Mr Tor Olav Trøim is an independent Board member and has served as a Director of Stolt-Nielsen Limited since April 2016.

Experience

Mr Trøim was an equity portfolio manager with Storebrand ASA and Chief Executive Officer for the Norwegian Oil Company DNO AS until 1995. He was employed by Seatankers Management Co. from 1995 to 2014. During this period he was also, at various times, Chief Executive Officer of a number of related public companies, including Frontline Limited, Golar LNG Ltd, Ship Finance Ltd. and Seadrill Ltd. He has served as a Director on the boards of Frontline, Marine Harvest ASA, Golden Ocean Group Limited, Seadrill Ltd, Archer Limited and Aktiv Kapital ASA, among others. In 2014, Mr Trøim established Magni Partners UK, which focuses on research and consultancy in the energy industry. He graduated as M.Sc. Naval Architect from the University of Trondheim, Norway in 1985 and is a Norwegian citizen.

Other appointments

Mr Trøim is Chairman of Golar LNG Ltd and Borr Drilling Ltd, Director at Vaalerenga Fotball AS and owner of Magni Sport and Magni Partners UK, where he is also Managing Partner.