More than a century on the high seas: our talented and committed team of experts serves the shipping industry from Stockholm to anywhere our clients need us. This is our story.
Since 1912, Ivar Lundh has been a permanent fixture on the waterfronts of the Swedish capital. What began as a ship brokerage has evolved over the years, and today we are one of the longest-serving names in Stockholm’s proud seafaring tradition. Behind our story stands a close-knit team of 15 remarkable individuals: people whose experience, judgement, and personal commitment are shaping our fortunes every day.
The modern Ivar Lundh is an investment and holding group which manages operations across multiple segments. Many of these operations are still conducted under the historic Ivar Lundh name. And, while some ventures now function under a distinct identity, all have one thing in common: the Ivar Lundh methodology within their company DNA.
Each venture that operates under the aegis of the Ivar Lundh name is well-resourced and governed by experts. We are a diverse family; a mix of many ingredients. We believe that success can be achieved through individual excellence and collective consistency: in striking that perfect balance between steady corporate oversight and an entrepreneurial spirit.
This is reflected in the way we have grown. Our expansion has not happened overnight. Nor has it occurred by chance. Where Ivar Lundh has developed its operations, it has done so with prudent planning, and in accordance with the strategic roadmap of our entire organisation.
But we embrace organic change as it occurs, too: acting quickly to capitalise on new opportunities, and utilising the full extent of our resources to foster growth when it is advantageous to us, our stakeholders, our partners, and our clients. These decisions are backed by the knowledge we have earned from a century of hands-on service to the shipping industry.
The Ivar Lundh Family.
Ivar Lundh is owned by a consortium of Swedish shipping and investment companies. We are a family of enterprises. Our structure is a solid foundation, upon which we are building a shared vision of the future – both for the company and for our stakeholders.
Our shareholders are AB Hoppet (Jacob Engwall), Stockholm Chartering AB, Swedocean AB (Belfrage family), Altaal AB, Ozwald AB (Mikael Laurin), Jilkén Invest AB (Daniel Jilkén) and Oktania AB (Jonatan Karlström).
Our Holdings.
STOC Shipping Invest AB.
Stoc Shipping Invest AB owns the petroleum and chemical tankers Stoc Marcia; Stoc Baltic; and Stoc Nike. These vessels are in the 4,000 – 8,000 deadweight (DWT) range and trade primarily in Northern Europe and the Baltic Sea.
ScanOcean AB.
ScanOcean AB is an international energy provider and distribution company with a focus on traditional marine fuels, renewable marine fuels, and environmental services.
Swede Chem Tankers AB.
Swede Chem Tankers AB is the exclusive commercial manager of the Stoc Shipping Invest fleet.
The Ivar Lundh History.
The beginning.
Ivar Lundh is founded by Ivar Lundh and Johannes Dolk in Stockholm, Sweden as a ship broker focusing exclusively on dry bulk cargo. The enterprise continues to trade as such all the way until the end of World War II. Primary commodities include coal, coke, iron ore, grain and forest products. Our ship agency department is also an important part of the company during this period.
We play a significant role in the foundation of the Swedish Ship brokers’ Association (Sveriges Skeppsmäklareförening). This industry body is founded to advance the interests of its member organisations. Ivar Lundh’s Johannes Dolk is appointed as the inaugural chairman of the association, having already established himself as a pivotal figure within the industry.
The 1940s.
Dry cargo remains our core revenue stream into the post-war period, with increasing trade in both coal and coke.
It is around this time that Ivar Lundh begins to act as the in-house shipping broker for the Swedish company Rex-bolaget. We negotiate and finalise long-term ship leases (some lasting up to ten years), as well as organising spot-charters and contracts of affreightment.
In 1944, Ivar Lundh is registered as a limited liability company for the first time, becoming the Ivar Lundh & Co Aktiebolag (AB). This marks a significant milestone for the company and signals the intent to solidify the Ivar Lundh name within Swedish shipping.
In 1946, we establish a tanker department, which has remained active and successful from its inception.
In 1948, Hans-Otto Ramel joins Ivar Lundh. An exceptional individual in every respect, Ramel remains with the company until September 2004, acting variously as partner, CEO, and Chairman of the Board. Hans-Otto’s tenure with Ivar Lundh creates a lasting legacy and fosters a strong sense of continuity for the company throughout the decades.
During the late 1950s, Ivar Lundh takes a rare step back onto dry land, as we broker the first automobile transportation contract between Wallenius Lines and Volkswagen.
The 1960s.
A more affluent time is reflected in our business activities, with sales and purchases becoming a new – and increasingly significant – part of our day-to-day operations. A series of valuable shipbuilding contracts are finalised during the decade.
We commission four vessels for construction by Götaverken in Gothenburg, on behalf of Greek ship owners, Pappas. One of these, the Pappas Thessaloniki – a 90,800 ton tanker – is the largest vessel of its class at the time. We also secure newbuild contracts for seven ferries for the Tor Line and Lion Ferries companies.
We continue to set new precedents in the dry cargo industry, too: fixing the world’s first shipment of forestry products to be fulfilled by the innovative Roll On/Roll Off fleet of the Wallenius company. This groundbreaking operation is later extended into a long-term contract.
Ivar Lundh is also appointed as the exclusive agent for Messrs Persöner AB, owners of a shipbreaking yard in Ystad, southern Sweden. Our agents purchase a large quantity of vessels for breaking at their yard.
We continue our expansion across new segments and territories with a yard agency for primarily German yards, including Blohm+Voss, Rheinstahl Nordseewerke, and Nobiskrug.
The 1970s.
The 1970s are a period of diversification in our business model. This begins with Ivar Lundh creating a joint ownership concern alongside our associates in the forestry industry, AB Iggesunds Bruk.
Uniship Distribution AB is formed, with both enterprises acting as equal partners of the new venture.
Uniship Distribution fulfills the majority of Iggesunds Bruk’s product exports on the time-chartered, custom-built Roll On/Roll Off vessel, the Breant.
Uniship Distribution AB continues to operate from 1974 until 1995.
Dry cargo operations during this period include a high volume of charter fixtures for Johnson Line. Ivar Lundh is instrumental in facilitating trade between Europe and South America.
In 1975, we commission nine small coasters for construction by a Japanese yard in Niigata. The order is placed by a consortium of part-owners, and led by Stefan Trybom AB in Gävle. The deal is to be one of the more remarkable of this period as it is still very unusual for European customers to place orders of this type and quantity with Far Eastern yards at this time.
Our German yard agency completes a series of newbuild contracts throughout the 1970s, including the Svea Marina for Rederi AB Svea; two Ore/Bulk/ Oil vessels (OBOs) of about 100,000 tons for Gränges Rederi AB; and four 16,000 ton product tankers for Neste, Finland.
The 1980s.
You will never hear anybody who has worked in shipping say “boats don’t have personalities”. As the 1980s come around, we welcome some of our most beloved and characterful vessels in the company’s long history.
First, there is Oden. We form Svenskt IsbrytarKonsortium KB to oversee the ownership of this famous icebreaker. The ship is built and delivered by Götaverken in Göteborg in 1988 and remains Sweden’s largest icebreaker – and one of the world’s most powerful non-nuclear icebreakers – to this very day.
Oden’s life in service sees the vessel leased as a long-term, bareboat charter to the Swedish Board of Navigation, where it is deployed as a key icebreaker and research platform. The lease lasts from her delivery in 1988 until 2003, at which point the organisation purchases her.
Next, the Arctica begins transportation of tall oil from Arizona Chemicals, and coal tar from SSAB and Ruukki. The vessel diligently serves this trade route from 1988, all the way up until her sale in 2008.
The Arctica remains with Ivar Lundh for many years: we act both as brokers for its three separate owners, and provide occasional time charterers for the vessel.
This decade also sees us undertaking a process of modernisation and transformation.
A family enterprise from its inception, Ivar Lundh is initially helmed by brothers Ivar, Torsten, and Axel Lundh and subsequently by Torsten’s son Ivar and Axel’s son Akke. But in the 1980s, the Lundh family takes a step back from leadership roles, and ownership is gradually transferred to our employers and to investors with close ties to the shipping industry.
The 1990s.
We welcome three new ships to our operation for our first venture into commercial tanker management. Ahlmark Lines AB heads the consortium which purchases the three 7,000-ton vessels, each acquired with our assistance.
The ships arrive as combination carriers and operate as such throughout the decade, before being converted into pure product tankers later in their service. Ivar Lundh acts as the commercial manager of the tankers from 1996 until their eventual sale in 2010 and 2011.
In 1999, Christer Sjöberg joins Ivar Lundh as our tanker ship broker. We record an upswing in the chartering department under his capable management.
The 2000s.
Newbuilding contracts are concluded for three 7.000-tons Chemical and Product carriers between SRAB, Stockholm and Medmarine in Eregli, Turkey.
The vessel Stoc Marcia is ordered by the Stoc Shipping Invest AB consortium of Swedish investors. The order is fulfilled by Ceksan Shipyard in Tuzla, Turkey. The Stoc Marcia replaces Arctica in its commercial management agreement, operating in a dedicated trade of coal tar and tall oils in the Baltic Sea.
The 2010s.
The commercial management arm of the business proves to be a great success. Under favourable conditions we spin off these activities and establish Swede Chem Tankers AB. The brand begins operating as a distinct entity in 2012.
Its primary concern is to oversee the operation of a fleet of smaller tankers, each below 10,000 deadweight. We are joined by Gotland Tankers AB, who become one of our initial pool partners in the venture.
In 2013 we broaden the scope of our operations once again, this time as the company begins trading in marine fuels. This expansion adds another name to the Ivar Lundh family: Ivar Oil AB. The company builds a strong reputation as a bunker trader and physical supplier, rebranding as ScanOcean in 2018.
2012 marks our one hundredth year of service to the shipping industry. We celebrate our centenary with a banquet at the Maritime Museum in Stockholm, where customers, partners and employees gather to honour this historic landmark.
In the second half of the decade we continue to diversify into specialist segments, this time as Ivar Lundh Sjöprojekt AB: a joint venture between Ivar Lundh & Co AB and AB Bröderna Höglund in Kalmar.
Our work takes us to Lake Malar (Mälaren in its native Swedish), which lies to the west of Stockholm. The state-owned Förbifart Stockholm project is our client, and they require transportation solutions for crushed stones. Ivar Lundh Sjöprojekt AB purchases two vessels for this purpose. But the Förbifart Stockholm project is hit with delays, contractual disputes and broader economic uncertainty, all of which limit the development of operations in this segment. By 2017, the agency department that has been a part of the company from inception is sold to GAC.
But there are more positive advancements in other areas. Stoc Shipping Invest AB acquires its second vessel, Purple Gem, which we subsequently rename to Stoc Baltic.
Our competitive tanker chartering activities are merged with Monitor Shipping AB to create Ilco Monitor Shipping AB.
The 2020s.
We tend to characterise each decade in hindsight, as we look back at the events after they have unfolded. But the 2020s are perhaps defined by events that occur within the first few weeks of the decade.
The Covid-19 pandemic emerges in the first quarter of 2020 and immediately disrupts the entire global economy in ways that few can anticipate. Global transportation is impacted as severely as any aspect of everyday life.
But there is a reason why “steering the ship through stormy waters” is such a popular analogy for anybody struggling to make it through tough times such as these.
Ours is an industry where predictability is never assured, and where preparing for the unforeseen is an essential part of survival.
Each of the previous decades has taught us something that enables us to navigate the choppy waters of the present day. Ivar Lundh remains strong, and concentrates its efforts into key shipping areas. We strengthen our shareholder base at the same time, welcoming in Swedocean AB (Belfrage family), Altaal AB, Ozwald AB (Mikael Laurin), Jilkén Invest AB (Daniel Jilkén) and Oktania AB (Jonatan Karlström) as new shareholders as well as Board Members of the company.
Our most recent activities have seen us consolidate positions in existing markets and territories.
Stoc Shipping Invest AB adds to its fleet in 2024 with the purchase of the Nike. The renamed Stoc Nike is already an established part of Ivar Lundh, having served Swede Chem Tankers AB as a time-charter for more than a decade already. It plays a significant role in our operations, and its value to us makes the acquisition an obvious decision.
In early 2026, Ivar Lundh integrates the ship brokering activities of Ilco Monitor Shipping AB back into the parent company. The move signals the return of tanker chartering as an important part of Ivar Lundh’s day-to-day operations once again.
Today. And tomorrow…
Which brings us back to the present day. Although we have written the most recent chapter of the Ivar Lundh story, it is not the final chapter.
We look forward to the challenges of tomorrow, and stand ready to meet them on a solid foundation of knowledge, experience, and expertise.
Our mission remains the same as it has been for more than a hundred years: to meet the demands of today, to develop our capabilities, and to carry the Ivar Lundh name forwards into the future.
