Oldendorff and BHP collaborate to increase diversity in the maritime industry.

With women making up just one per cent of seafarers globally, Oldendorff Carriers (Oldendorff) and BHP have forged a new initiative to support efforts to increase diversity in the maritime industry.

Under the initiative, Oldendorff and BHP will collaborate across several areas to help broaden access to opportunities and make careers in the maritime sector more accessible and attractive.

 

Oldendorff representatives visited BHP’s industry-leading FutureFit Academy in Perth this week, marking the first in-person knowledge sharing initiative.

 

The FutureFit Academy is one of BHP’s key initiatives that has helped its business attract and develop talent in mining through investing in training pathways, qualifications and career opportunities. This included dedicated training academies with externally recognised qualifications.

 

BHP will also explore Oldendorff’s cadetship program to give both organisations deeper insight into what makes these programs successful.

 

Scott Bergeron, Managing Director Fleet, Oldendorff Carriers:

“As one of the world’s leading dry bulk carriers, we see it as our responsibility to help shape a more inclusive and accessible maritime industry for all.

 

Having achieved near gender equilibrium in our offices ashore, we have increased our focus on positions afloat. By investing in our onboard leaders, we will further improve our efforts to increase the access to opportunities for women in the highest levels across the company.

 

Our close partnership with BHP is an important enabler in taking our diversity efforts to the next level. Collaborating with a global chartering partner such as BHP allows us to build on our existing foundation and learn from one another. By exchanging experience and insights from initiatives like the FutureFit Academy and Oldendorff’s Global Cadetship Program, we can scale what works, challenge established approaches, and accelerate the development of inclusive pathways into seafaring and shore based maritime roles across the industry.”

 

Emma Roberts, Vice President Maritime & Supply Chain Excellence, BHP:

“This initiative is a great opportunity for BHP, as one of the world’s largest dry bulk charterers, to work alongside Oldendorff to make a positive impact on gender diversity in the maritime sector.

 

Training pathways are critical in developing access and career opportunities for every industry, but they are also an important building block for creating more diverse workforces. The maritime industry connects ports and products across every continent — and the people in the industry underpin its success.

 

Expanding our attractiveness to a wider section of the overall workforce made easy sense when BHP set our ambition. It was driven by belief that a diverse organisation would bring a competitive advantage in performance capability and our capacity to grow to meet business needs.”

 

Background:

Oldendorff currently employs 150 female seafarers in their fleet, serving in 13 different ranks, spread over all departments and management levels. They aim to increase the pool of female seafarers by the end of 2026 to 200 with a natural growth of female representation in officers rank to 6%.

 

The Global Cadet Program: Embracing Diversity is a cornerstone initiative supporting Oldendorff’s diversity objectives. The program currently includes around 200 trainees from 21 nationalities and focuses on supporting female officers from the very start of their careers, helping to strengthen long term inclusion both onboard vessels and ashore. For the third consecutive year, the cadet intake has been equally balanced between women and men across all cadet ranks.

 

BHP is a world-leading resources company. BHP works in more than 90 locations worldwide and its products are sold globally.

 

BHP is positioned to support the megatrends shaping the world including Iron ore and metallurgical coal for the steel needed for global infrastructure and the energy transition along with Copper for renewable energy. Looking ahead BHP is moving into potash to support more sustainable farming.

 

BHP’s FutureFit Academy is a recognised leader in diversifying the BHP technical and maintenance workforce in Australia.

 

FFA delivers a suite of nationally recognised qualifications which directly support maintenance reliability, operational continuity, and long‑term workforce sustainability.

 

Since 2016, BHP has brought an extra 10,000 women into its business and achieved its goal to achieve gender balance – at least 40 per cent women and 40 per cent men – across BHP’s workforce by the end of 2025.