73. Evangelos Marinakis, Capital

Football strongman has evolved from being a product tanker specialist

IN HIS native Greece, Evangelos Marinakis is known primarily as the strongman behind the country’s dominant football club, Olympiacos; in shipping, he is identified mainly as chairman of a Nasdaq-listed company, Capital Product Partners. But that is only part of the story.

Mr Marinakis’ private shipping group, Capital Maritime — the sponsor of the publicly listed company — is a financially strong entity in its own right.

At mid-2013, it had total assets of close to $1bn and net debt was recently put at 23% of the fleet’s market value. It privately owns and operates five tankers, two bulkers and two boxships and it has been in the vanguard of Greek companies clinching highly competitive eco-vessel orders, spanning three different market sectors.

Its substantial newbuilding programme includes six high-specification medium range chemical product tankers and three wide-beam 9,100 teu container vessels. Options could extend the programme even further.

Recently, Capital has also been linked with significant capesize and newcastlemax dry bulk carrier orders.In the past two years, Mr Marinakis has masterminded the transformation of Capital Product Partners from a product tanker specialist into a diversified outfit, with the necessary secure cashflow to support one of the industry’s more attractive levels of return to investors.

A key deal in this respect was the 2013 acquisition of five Hyundai Merchant Marine-chartered containership newbuildings from the private Capital Maritime fleet.

The group has not only created a pipeline of possible acquisition opportunities to feed its publicly listed affiliate in future, but has also supported it by becoming a key charterer.By all accounts, the commercial acumen embedded in Capital Maritime has ensured that both public and private entities win from the relationship.

Group company Capital Ship Management is rated as a top shipmanager and this is reflected in the calibre of many of the group’s outside charterers, prominent among which is BP Shipping.

Mr Marinakis is seen as a heavy hitter among Greek owners and it is nice to report that he has been using his influence and financial strength for good purposes.

Already an active supporter of numerous Greek and international charity and humanitarian projects, he recently teamed Olympiacos with Unicef to raise money for, and awareness of, the need to vaccinate children.

Evangelos Marinakis was listed in the Top 100 in 2010, 2011 and 2012.