On 28 July, a meeting of the Board of the Freeport of Riga appointed a long-term professional from the transport and logistics sector, Ansis Zeltiņš, as the CEO of the Freeport of Riga. On 28 June, the Board of the Freeport of Riga unanimously supported his candidacy for the position of CEO, though it was still necessary to receive the consent of Transport Minister Uldis Augulis, which was eventually received. Zeltiņš started his work as CEO on 1 August.
“One of my most important tasks at the very beginning will be to work out a new Riga port development plan for the next 10 years. I have undertaken to prepare and submit such a plan for approval to the government within the coming year. It is important to ensure the continuity of the port development and to strengthen its competitiveness, which will be the task of the new port development plan. The capacity and sustainable infrastructure of the Freeport of Riga undeniably place it at the top of the list of the most important ports in the Baltic region. There is a range of already-begun works and projects to be successfully implemented, including the restructuring of the port authority and strengthening of the administration; the distribution of financial functions and team building have to be finished; the work on the Krievu Island project has to be completed,” explained the new CEO of the Freeport of Riga, Ansis Zeltiņš.
Ansis Zeltiņš was born in 1975, obtained a bachelor’s and master’s degree in maritime transport at the Latvian Maritime Academy and a master’s degree in business administration at the University of Salford, United Kingdom. Zeltiņš’ professional experience is related to the shipping sector (captain’s assistant on Aframax-type cargo ships) and leading positions in the private and public sector in the field of transport and logistics. Currently, Zeltiņš holds the position of the Chairperson of the Board at VAS Latvijas dzelzceļš, Director and Member of the Board at SIA Rīgas brīvostas flote, as well as Advisor to the Chairperson of the Board at VAS Latvijas Jūras administrācija. Before that, he was a transport sector attaché in the European Union, managed VAS Latvijas Jūras administrācija, and also held leading positions in several private companies related to the transport and logistics sector.
In accordance with the approved regulations, an open competition was organised in three stages: in the first stage, the applicants’ compliance with general criteria was assessed; in the second, the applicants’ special, sector-related knowledge and competencies were assessed; in the final stage, applicants were interviewed in person. The regulations envisaged that applicants were required to have higher academic or second-level professional education in management, finance, economics or engineering; in turn, education related to the transport sector (port management, transport and logistics) or maritime activity (navigation, ship management) was considered to be an advantage. Likewise, at least five years of professional experience in leading positions in large-scale capital companies or public-sector institutions or organisations was required. A high degree of language proficiency was also required of applicants: both official languages at the highest levels and at least English and Russian language skills as well.
With regard to the applicants’ special, sector-related knowledge and competencies, a profound understanding of port activities and applicable regulatory enactments, experience in strategic development management, financial and planning matters, international cooperation experience, which the applicant had to be substantiate in writing, as well as a spotless reputation were required.
The selection and assessment of applicants was carried out by the commission for the selection and assessment of candidates for the position of the CEO of the Freeport of Riga, approved by the Board of the Freeport of Riga, which included the following: Jānis Krastiņš, Chairperson of the Board at VAS Latvijas Jūras administrācija (representative of the Ministry of Transport); Ieva Braunfelde, Head of the Administration of the Ministry of Finance (representative of the Ministry of Finance); Andris Grafs, Head of the Baltic Institute of Corporate Governance (representative of the Ministry of Economics); Kristaps Treimanis, Chairperson of the Board at VSIA Latvijas Vides, ģeoloģijas un meteoroloģijas centrs (representative of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development); Jānis Liepiņš, Director of the Legal Directorate of the Riga City Council (representative of the Riga City Council); Ilze Spūle-Statkus, Head of the Commercial Activity Provision Board of the Property Department of the Riga City Council (representative of the Riga City Council); and sworn advocate Modris Supe (representative of the Freeport of Riga Authority). Aleksandrs Muhlinkins, Deputy Chairperson of the Free Trade Union Confederation of Latvia; Katrīna Zariņa, Member of the Board of the Latvian Chamber of Commerce and Industry; and a representative of the Employers’ Confederation of Latvia were granted advisory rights on the commission.