KINGSTON Wharves has announced two key management appointments.

Rodrigo Olea has been appointed chief operations officer, terminal division; and Valrie Campbell has been appointed general manager for group operations. The latest assignments are geared at positioning the company for its next phase of growth, CEO Mark Williams said.

“We are in expansion mode, focused on our strategic push to enhance competitiveness and consolidate our role as a market leader in the region through capacity building, targeted marketing strategies, and technology-driven operational improvement,” the CEO said.

The group is in the process of executing major capital investment projects, including the Berth 7 Redevelopment Project and the construction of a 150,000-square-feet logistics and warehousing facility.

“It is essential that, commensurate with those investments, that we reconfigure and assemble an elite team that can drive our performance and growth,” Williams stated.

“I have confidence in both appointees to bring their combined wealth of experience and knowledge of the industry to achieve success in the position,” the CEO noted.

Olea has more than 31 years of leadership, management, and operations experience across all aspects of port and terminal services. He has led and managed terminal operations in multiple developing markets, including Chile, Brazil, and the Dominican Republic. He has successfully driven significant performance improvements across operational, financial and human capital metrics.

In June 2022 Olea completed a multi-year assignment as chief operating officer (COO) for the DP World Caucedo container terminal in the Dominican Republic, which handles more than 2 million twenty-foot-equivalent units (TEUs) per year.

Prior to DP World Caucedo, Olea was managing director for DP World San Antonio, Chile. He transitioned to that role when DP World acquired Puerto Central SA, where he had been general manager (GM) from August 2011 to March 2019.

Olea also worked for 19 years spanning several positions in the terminal and ship management operations of Compania Sud Americana de Vapores (CSAV).

Campbell on the other hand is a certified port management professional with over 22 years of experience. Campbell has steadily moved through the ranks at KWL, serving in several management positions over the last 10 years — first as terminal manager and then as director of terminal operations (DTO). She has achieved the distinction of being the first female terminal manager in port operations in Jamaica.

As DTO, Campbell has overseen the day-to-day delivery of efficient, multi-purpose cargo handling and terminal operations; spearheaded the optimisation of terminal functions; and has delivered on executing the critical, organisational, strategic mandate of transforming the terminal into a leading motor vehicle trans-shipment hub.