A.P. MØLLER HOLDING A/S ANNUAL REPORT 2019 · MANAGEMENT REVIEW
INVESTMENT STRATEGY During 2019, A.P. Moller Holding continued to make progress on the mission to drive portfolio renewal. Highlights for the year include adding six additional members to the investment team, achieving internal alignment on the investment strategy and making the first large investment by committing DKK 1.5bn of equity to KK Wind Solutions.
In the past year, A.P. Moller Holding has been working on refining the investment strategy including framework and approach. This has been an interactive process involving many people in the A.P. Moller Group – on the one hand attempting to create a robust strategy for the future, while at the same time seeking inspiration from the Group’s legacy, assets and network over the past 115 years. Dialogue, interaction and alignment have been essential. THE CORE OF THE INVESTMENT FOCUS In defining the strategy for where to focus future investments, several choices have been made, all rooted in how (in the best possible way) to realise the ambition of being engaged owners in businesses, that have enduring financial potential, while delivering a positive contribution to society (‘nyttig virksomhed’). The core focus is at the intersection of the three circles – seeking to invest in businesses or incubation projects that: • • •
are rooted in and driven by long-term megatrends, deliver a positive impact on society, and where A.P. Moller Holding can impact the outcome or degree of success by being a value-add and engaged owner.
The main focus is to make investments in large, global and established businesses; but, adhering to A.P. Moller Holding’s entrepreneurial genes, also evaluating incubation platforms such as the current geothermal project. A STRUCTURE TO SUPPORT THE LONG-TERM FOCUS A.P. Moller Holding is a long-term owner of businesses, so the core focus must be on the long-term drivers of value and less on short-term opportunities to optimise. This approach implies investing time and resources in seeking investments within a theme that will be relevant for several business cycles. Investments will be made across multiple sectors and countries, but the work is initiated around long-term trends. To ensure this focus, the investment team is organised around themes and, unlike institutional investors, not focused on traditional sectors. Once invested, A.P. Moller Holding exercises engaged ownership from the boards of the respective companies. By leveraging the company’s network, it is possible to recruit highly capable, international profiles that, together with the investment team, can help drive the respective businesses forward.
RESOURCE EFFICIENCY In 2019, a key theme, or mega trend, has been ‘resource efficiency’. It is a very broad theme that offsets the fact that global consumption of several resources is under pressure. For some resources, this implies that more sustainable replacements are being adapted and for others it implies that use and utilisation of such resources must be optimised. The shift to green power and energy, including electrification, is therefore part of the resource efficiency thematic. In 2019, A.P. Moller Holding invested in KK Wind Solutions, which is a company that addresses and grows as this trend proliferates. With its products and solutions, KK Wind Solutions is creating wind power generating assets, that each year power approximately five million additional homes. During 2019, A.P. Moller Holding also advanced the work on the geothermal incubation project, which is another investment within resource efficiency. In both cases, engaged ownership is exercised by providing network, capital and relevant capabilities to the businesses in line with A.P. Moller Holding’s strategic approach. LONG-TERM OWNERSHIP The above two examples also highlight the different roles A.P. Moller Holding seeks to have as long-term engaged owners, considering incubation projects such as the geothermal start-up as well as large existing businesses with a promising future. The desire is, however, to invest large amounts of capital and the focus is on investments with deployment opportunities of several hundred million dollars at a minimum, once scale is reached. This is a way to maintain a lean internal structure with focus and discipline. The investment team continues to increase human capital and now counts ten professionals up from four at the end of 2018. The plan is to continue to selectively add relevant expertise, aiming for a diverse team that presently includes six different nationalities and working experiences from three different continents. A.P. Moller Group has had a global footprint for 115 years, so the team and thinking must have the same global outlook to be able to build on the legacy.
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