HARPER PETERSEN was founded in 1943 in the UK, and in the 1980's went on to become one of the leading chartering agents for P & O Containers, Nedlloyd, Safmarine, United Arab Shipping, CSAV, CP Ships group, Crowley and Harrisons.
In 2003 Hamburg based ER Schifffahrt and Rickmers Reederei became joint shareholders of HARPER PETERSEN and assumed full ownership in 2004.
In September 2004 a subsidiary company, Eight Dragons Ship Brokers Ltd, was founded in Hong Kong together with a representative office in Shanghai in order to expand business in Asia. This company was renamed Harper Petersen & Co. (Asia) Ltd. in August 2007 in order to give a common brand to our business activities worldwide.
CONTCHART was founded in 2012 by Thien & Heyenga. In autumn 2012, MPC Münchmeyer Petersen Steamship, Ahrenkiel Shipmanagement and GB Shipping & Chartering became new partners of the joint venture.
In 2015 HARPER PETERSEN started a bulk desk with the focus to look exclusively after the bulk carriers of its shareholders and in 2016 the company expanded its business activities in Asia by establishing Harper Petersen & Co. Pte. Ltd., Singapore.
In 2016 CONTCHART became a fully owned subsidiary of MPC Capital. End of 2018 CONTCHART opened branch offices in the Netherlands and Singapore.
In 2018, HARPER PETERSEN was sold to Bremen-based Zeaborn Group, which in 2019 joined forces with MPC Capital, merging their activities in shipbroking, chartering and commercial management in a newly found joint venture and under the traditional shipbroker brand HARPER PETERSEN .
