Fornæs Ship Recycling

Fornæs Ship Recycling is a Danish shipbreaking and marine parts trading company based at Grenaa harbour on the Djursland peninsula. Its story begins in 1992, when founder Kresten Hjelm recognised an opportunity at the harbour: rather than outsourcing the dismantling of his own vessels, he chose to scrap them in-house, salvaging and reselling the equipment directly. That hands-on approach laid the foundation for the business and proved commercially successful. Over more than three decades the company has dismantled well over 2,000 ships and vessels, losing count along the way. The majority have been fishing vessels of various sizes, but the yard has also handled freighters, supply vessels, ferries and at least one military vessel. Most of the ships come from Scandinavia and the United Kingdom. The operation combines shipbreaking with the sale of used and recycled marine equipment, including propulsion systems, engine parts, auxiliary engines and engine-room materials. Fornæs holds the environmental approvals required for scrapping ships and handling toxic waste. Metals are recycled, and waste is destroyed or deposited in line with environmental legislation. The company maintains a large stockyard of roughly 80,000 square metres outdoors plus about 15,000 square metres of warehouses, and it purchases vessels for demolition on a continuous basis. Offers for ships are not based purely on tonnage; type, age and the number of machines and components are also taken into account. Today Fornæs remains rooted in Grenaa's maritime activity with a team of about 20 employees. The company is led by CEO Keld Kokholm, with founder Kresten Hjelm continuing as owner, supported by COO Otto Jensen, CFO Susanne Møller Jensen, CTO Danni Pallisgaard and a sales team. It describes itself as a vital part of the local community and the maritime industry, committed to the legacy of innovation and quality established by its founder.

Fornæs Ship Recycling traces its origins to 1992, when founder Kresten Hjelm identified an opportunity at Grenaa harbour on the Djursland peninsula in Denmark. Instead of outsourcing the dismantling of his own ships, he decided it made more sense to dismantle them himself. This hands-on approach streamlined the process and allowed him to salvage and sell the equipment directly, establishing the foundation of the company. The venture proved successful. Over the years Fornæs dismantled more than 2,000 ships and sold an even greater number of parts. The majority of vessels were fishing vessels of various sizes, but the yard also processed freighters, supply vessels, ferries and a military vessel. Most vessels came from Scandinavia and the United Kingdom. As the business grew, Fornæs developed the infrastructure to handle large volumes of material. Its stockyard today covers more than 80,000 square metres outdoors, with approximately 15,000 square metres in warehouses. The company obtained all necessary environmental approvals for scrapping ships and handling toxic waste, recycling all metals and destroying or depositing waste according to environmental legislation. Fornæs also built a trading operation around the resale of used and recycled marine equipment, including propulsion systems, engine parts, auxiliary engines and engine-room materials. It purchases ships and vessels for demolition on a continuous basis, and its offers take into account not only tonnage but also vessel type, age and the number of machines and components. Today the company remains rooted in Grenaa harbour's maritime activity. It has a dedicated team of about 20 employees and is led by CEO Keld Kokholm, with founder Kresten Hjelm continuing as owner. The leadership team includes COO Otto Jensen, CFO Susanne Møller Jensen, CTO Danni Pallisgaard and sales staff. Fornæs describes itself as a vital part of the local community and the maritime industry, committed to maintaining the legacy of innovation and quality that Kresten started more than three decades ago.

• 1992

  Fornæs founded by Kresten Hjelm at Grenaa harbour, Denmark, beginning in-house ship dismantling.

• Company dismantles more than 2,000 ships over its history, including fishing vessels, freighters, supply vessels, ferries and a military vessel.

• Fornæs develops a stockyard of over 80,000 m² outdoors and approximately 15,000 m² of warehouses.

• Keld Kokholm appointed CEO, leading a team of about 20 employees, with founder Kresten Hjelm continuing as owner.

A hands-on Danish ship recycling specialist combining environmentally approved shipbreaking with a large inventory of used and recycled marine parts.

• Propulsion systems

  Used and recycled propulsion systems for ships.

• Engine parts

  Used and recycled engine parts from dismantled vessels.

• Auxiliary engines

  Used and recycled auxiliary engines.

• Engine room materials

  Recycled materials for ship engine rooms.

1. 1Fornaes.comfornaes.com
2. 2About usfornaes.com
3. 3Inquire about componentsfornaes.com
4. 4Fornæs Ship Recyclingwikidata.org