Maersk Chief Operating Officer Jumps Ship, Lands In CEO Slot at MSC

The news a few days ago was vaguely mysterious, and delivered more questions than answers. Here's World Maritime News, November 12:

Maersk’s Søren Toft Leaves, Company Looking for New COO
 Danish shipping major A.P. Møller – Mærsk revealed a sudden departure of Chief Operating Officer, Søren Toft, as he decided to pursue an opportunity outside of the company.

Toft left his position effective November 11, Maersk said, adding that the responsibilities as Chief Operating Officer would in the interim be taken on by Søren Skou effective immediate.

The Executive Board will hereafter consist of Søren Skou, CEO and interim COO, Carolina Dybeck Happe, CFO, Vincent Clerc, CCO, and Morten Engelstoft, CEO of APM Terminals.

“I have worked with Søren for many years, and I appreciate Søren’s many contributions to A.P. Moller – Maersk. He leaves an agile and strong operating organization and we all wish Søren the very best in the future,” Søren Skou, CEO of A.P. Moller – Maersk, said....

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And today we read at gCaptain:

Report: Maersk’s Former Head of Operations Appointed CEO of MSC

Søren Toft, A.P. Møller – Mærsk’s former Chief Operating Officer whose abrupt resignation was announced earlier this week, is heading to Maersk rival and 2M alliance partner MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company where he will serve as its new CEO, according to media reports.

The news comes after Maersk made the surprise announcement on Monday that Toft had resigned with immediate effect from his role as COO of Maersk to pursue another opportunity.

Details of his departure, including where Toft was headed, had been kept under wraps. However, new reporting from Shipping Watch states that Toft has been appointed as the new CEO of MSC, the world’s second largest container shipping company behind Maersk. The change is expected to officially announced next week, the report says....MORE

I'm sure the extremely well off Aponte clan will make Mr. Toft feel welcome in Geneva.

And just to make things interesting, there's this tidbit from October:

Shipping: "Maersk Could Lose Biggest Carrier Crown"
From the Loadstar via gCaptain, October 17:

MSC is on course to overtake alliance partner Maersk as the biggest ocean carrier by capacity within the next two years.

A new order for five 23,000 teu ULCVs from the South Korean Daewoo yard will take the Geneva-based carrier’s orderbook to 16 vessels, for a massive 305,352 teu, according to Alphaliner data.....