As chair of A.P. Moller - Maersk, I extend a warm welcome to all shareholders at our Annual General Meeting. Similar to last year, this meeting will be conducted online, allowing our shareholders to participate and interact with the company through our shareholder portal. This format ensures that all our shareholders across many countries have the same opportunity and the same access to take part of and stay updated via the live webcast. Our CEO, Vincent Clerc, has joined me in this studio, and together we will address any questions you might have. As chair of the Annual General Meeting, the board of directors has chosen Niels Kornerup, partner of the law firm Bech-Bruun. I give the word to you, Niels.
Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you to the board of directors for appointing me as the meeting chair of the Annual General Meeting in A.P. Moller - Maersk. I look forward to carrying out this completely electronic general meeting in an orderly manner. I will start out by noting that the general meeting is delayed by up to some seconds, depending on your internet connection. For this reason, I will occasionally slow down the speed to synchronize what is going on and occurring here at the physical location for the general meeting, and what is broadcasted to you and received, at, to you by, at the screens. Before we get into the agenda of the Annual General Meeting, we have some few formalities tasks to go through.
Firstly, we need to determine whether the general meeting is duly convened and legally capable to transact the business comprised by the agenda of today. Prior to the Annual General Meeting, I have noted that the notice convening the general meeting was published in due time, and that it has properly satisfied the requirements in the company's articles, as well as in the Danish Companies Act. In addition, for adoption of item H(2) and item H(4) regarding reduction of share capital and amendment of the articles of association, respectively, Article 11 of the Articles of Association requires that at least two-thirds of the A Shares are represented at the general meeting. I can inform you that this requirement have already been met prior to the general meeting, as it was registered that 86% of the votes, and by that the A Shares, were represented at this general meeting.
The figures are is determined after reduction of treasury shares and without taking into account the B Shares, as these, as you will note, does not carry any votes. The requirement was met at the start of the general meeting. The final figures will be shown in the minutes of the general meeting. I can therefore conclude that the Annual General Meeting is duly convened and legally capable to transact the business comprised by the agenda of today. I hope for the shareholders' support to this. Thank you. I will record the minutes, in the minutes of the general meeting that the formal tasks regarding the general meeting have been satisfied. The board of directors have received posted votes and proxies equivalent to more than 98% of the votes, and this is after reduction of treasury shares.
I can inform you that the board of directors' proposal and recommendation enjoys great support. As mentioned in previous years' general meeting, Section 101, Section 5 in the Danish Companies Act, which requires a full account of the voting to be provided for every resolution adopted at the general meeting, even though the results are clear, must be mentioned. I propose that we follow the previous practice, or previous year's practice, and deviate from the providing a full account of the voting for every resolution adopted. I allow myself to assume that the general meeting, in accordance with previous practice, agrees with this procedure proposed, and if any objection, I expect that you will send in a mail via the Q&A function. No reaction, so thank you for that.
It is possible to follow the general meeting on the company's website as well as via the AGM Portal. Shareholders who have registered their attendance and want to participate in the debate must log on and follow the general meeting via the AGM Portal. It is not possible to participate in the debate, nor ask questions if the AGM is followed via the webcast on the company's website. We will now turn to the debate and the electronic communication with the shareholders and how that is handled. Everything will, as I just mentioned, be carried out via the AGM Portal, to which a login have been provided to all registered shareholders. As shown on the slide, you must click on the Q&A icon in the top right corner of the AGM Portal.
Once clicked, a window will appear in which you can type your question or your comments. Please note that questions or comments are limited to 2,000 characters. When you have finished typing, you must press the Send button, and thereafter, the question or the comment will reach us here at A.P. Moller - Maersk, where a lawyer from my office will review the comments or the questions. Once reviewed, the question will be read out loud at the relevant point of time at the agenda, in order for the question to actually be part of our debate. Again, as the debate is in writing, I encourage everyone that question and comments, and for the benefit of all, are kept clear and concise in order to conduct, we conduct an orderly debate at this general meeting.
You can submit a question or comment at any time, as we'll make sure that the submission is read out loud at the relevant item. If you experience any technical problem, you can reach out to Computershare on the telephone number, which is shown at the AGM Portal. Technical problems should be handled via the telephone number and not via the Q&A function at the AGM Portal. So after these starting remarks, that bring us to today's agenda, which have been published in the notice and is as follows: Item A, report on the activities of the company during the past financial year. Item B, submission of the audited annual report for adoption. Item C, resolution to grant discharge to directors. D, resolution on appropriation of profit and the amount of dividend in accordance with the adopted annual account.
Then follows item E, the remuneration report is presented for approval, and F, any requisite re-election of members for the Board of Directors. G, item G, election of auditors. And finally, we have item H, which is deliberation of any proposals submitted by the Board of Directors or by shareholders. And this year, we have six proposals. There are four proposals from the Board of Directors and two proposals from shareholders. And the first one is H(1) , and that is regarding authorization to declare extraordinary dividend. H(2) is share capital reduction. H(3) is approval of indemnification scheme, and H (4) is amendment of the articles of association in relation to H (3), the indemnification scheme. Then follows two suggestions or proposal from shareholders, and H (5) is a proposal put forward by AkademikerPension and LD Fonde regarding disclosures on human rights due diligence process.
Finally, Lotta Aho, which on H(6) , have a proposal regarding enforcement of the suppliers' code of conduct. By that, we move to the first items on the agenda. As it is common practice in A.P. Moller - Maersk, the introductory items on the agenda are processed jointly and brought up for debate jointly. We therefore deal with item A to E, five items together, and these items will also be discussed jointly. These are item, first one is the company's report on the past financial year. Next one is submission of the annual report. C is regarding discharging of the board of directors. D is resolution in relation to profit distribution, and finally, E, which is the remuneration report.
The chair of the board of directors, Robert Maersk Uggla, will present the management report and the annual report for 2023 for approval, including the grounds for proposal for appropriation of profit and distribution as dividend, as well as the remuneration report for 2023. With these remarks, I'll give the floor to the chair of the board, which is Mr. Robert Maersk Uggla. Please, Mr. Chair, the floor is yours.
Thank you, Niels. 2023 represented another eventful and challenging year in global shipping and logistics. After two years of exceptional macro developments, which supported activity and high margins, the market normalization accelerated during the year. At the same time, the oversupply of new container ships started to weigh heavily on freight rate sentiment, with a challenging supply-demand outlook ahead. 2023 was also a year when longer term structural changes in our industry became more visible. For the last few years, global trade has been growing at a slower rate than the world economy. This is a stark contrast to what has been the prevalent trend since the end of the Cold War. The traditional east-west trade routes are slowly losing their prominence. Trade blocks and intra-regional trade play an increasingly important role, influencing how cargo is sourced and moved globally....
These shifting trade patterns are most apparent in the U.S., which has reduced its share of imports from China. Especially Southeast Asia is among the biggest winner from the structural changes of trade. India is also expected to benefit from this trend, as it is expanding trade with U.S. and European counterparts, while at the same time, India is also seeing trade growth with other parts of the world, including Russia. However, it is important to keep in mind that China remains a significant global manufacturing hub. In 2023, China retained one-third of global container trade by exporting more to other countries. Unfortunately, we are also seeing a deteriorating security situation in many parts of the world. After a few decades of relative peace and relative stability in international waters, maritime traffic is now subject to prolonged, violent attacks.
The Black Sea transit has been adversely affected since Russia invaded Ukraine, and recent attacks in the vicinity of the Red Sea are challenging long-held assumptions about safe passage for shipping and for international trade. The Houthi rebels' attack on the global merchant fleet in the Bab al-Mandab Strait has forced a significant part of seaborne trade to circumvent the Suez Canal and sail south of the Cape of Good Hope, adding more than 13,000 kilometers to a round-trip voyage from Shanghai to Rotterdam. Trade and military conflicts are not the only disruptions. The impact of climate change on supply chains is becoming more apparent, with the low water levels in the Panama Canal being maybe the most recent example of that. We believe this may only be the beginning. Temperature increases above 1.5 degrees Celsius seem quite likely, leading to escalating physical impacts.
Disruption of agriculture systems, manufacturing centers, and transport nodes are likely to hold significant long-term implications for many industries, and consequently, for global trade. Recurring supply chain disruptions and the longer-term implications of global warming and geopolitics present formidable challenges for many of our customers and local communities dependent on trade. It also underscores the purpose and opportunity for our group to serve customers by providing reliable and extensive supply chain offerings. In this increasingly challenging environment, many industries are considering how to rewire their supply chains to reduce risk and add resilience to their operations. The selection of a logistics and transportation partner becomes a strategic and an important consideration for many of the customers we serve. In short, we believe that Maersk is a highly compelling choice.
We offer reliable products and services across the globe with a strong local presence, with a high degree of control of critical logistics, assets, and infrastructure, and with a willingness to invest in technology and also in green transportation solutions. This brings me to the status of our three main business segments: our ocean activities, our terminal activities, and our logistics activities. As mentioned earlier, our ocean activities experienced a challenging rate environment in 2023. During the year, efforts were made to prepare for the introduction of a best-in-class liner network to improve asset utilization and service levels. Part of this work included a new partnership with Hapag-Lloyd, called Gemini, which we intend to start in February of next year. The ambition is to deliver a flexible and interconnected ocean network with industry-leading reliability for our customers.
The cooperation totals a fleet pool of around 290 ships, with a combined capacity of 3.4 million TEUs. Parallel to advancing the new network, we continued our efforts in bringing down costs to 2009 levels to match the deteriorating market environment. Actions taken include the reduction of the global workforce by approximately 10,000 jobs, as well as slow steaming and many other network-related initiatives, reducing operating costs by around 14% year-on-year before foreign exchange effects. These initiatives cushioned some of the market impact of 2023.
While the increased fleet demand due to trade disruptions in the Red Sea provide some short-term benefits for the liner industry, the industry's larger order book of ships will likely exert pressure on rates during the second part of 2024, with a difficult outlook for the year. As for our terminal-related activities, APM Terminals continued to demonstrate strong performance and generated attractive returns in 2023. A key enabler of the new line and network Gemini mentioned earlier is APM Terminals, which is operating some of the world's most efficient ports. APM Terminals also continues to see some great growth opportunities. Projects include the $1 billion expansion in Rotterdam, the significant build-out of the Lázaro Cárdenas terminal in Mexico, as well as the automation of Pier 400 in Los Angeles.
The team is also developing new container terminals in countries such as Vietnam and Brazil, underpinning our belief that terminals remain an attractive industry to invest in. Finally, let me comment on our logistics activities. 2023 marked a transitional year for logistics and services, with lower volume, not least within lead logistics and e-commerce, negatively impacting margins. The focus in 2023 has been on integrating companies acquired over the last years to deliver on financial and operational synergies. We are yet to reap the full benefits of these acquisitions, and the work continues in 2024 to drive efficiencies in our logistics activities. On a positive note, we continue to see strong interest from our many customers in Maersk's supply chain offerings and logistics solutions.
Let me now give a perspective on three important areas for A.P. Moller - Maersk, our technology-related initiatives, our commitment to the energy transition, and the importance of providing a safe workplace to our many workers and our partners and suppliers. Technology continues to play a crucial role for Maersk. We are spending time and significant efforts to modernize many of our long-standing legacy systems. We also acknowledge the significant potential of artificial intelligence for global logistics and transportation, not least for our global line network and for our terminal activities, to predict and optimize container flows, thereby reducing CapEx and taking out unnecessary waste in the global supply chains. We are already starting to see the successful outcome of some pilots and applications of AI-based digital twins in APM Terminals to optimize our own shipping lines, port calls, and network configuration in the transshipment hubs.
We're also piloting AI across our sales and customer service functions. For example, our customer service teams, who are today handling over 32 million email queries a year, are seeing productivity improvements and faster customer response times through AI-based chatbots. The second area I would like to comment on is our energy transition commitment. September last year, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, named the world's first methanol-enabled container vessel, Laura Maersk. Also, many shareholders took advantage of the unique opportunity to visit the ship and to engage with our management team. Subsequently, we have started taking delivery of 18 large methanol-enabled vessels, with the first named Ane Maersk being delivered early this year. Across the industry, more than 150 vessels with similar propulsion technology are now in order, demonstrating a strong followership to our net zero ambition.
Now, access to competitive green fuels at scale is, of course, as vital as these ships. Our team is making good progress in securing green methanol offtake agreements in what is a completely new market. The first large agreement announced with Goldwind covers 500,000 tons of green methanol starting in 2026. All said, we will not be able to achieve our targets on our own. Even as we celebrate our decarb initiatives in many areas, such as the green propulsion systems for ships just mentioned, and the electrification of ports, of warehouses, and of many intermodal operations, it is very clear that we are dependent on customers to support and pay for green transition solutions. We are also dependent on regulators to create the right incentives.
The biggest challenge that we face is the cost gap between green and black fuels to incentivize customer uptake of green transfer solutions. We need a strong regulatory framework under the International Maritime Organization, or IMO, to secure a level playing field. Together with other members of the World Shipping Council, Maersk has put forward a proposal for a green balance mechanism. As the IMO meets these days in London, we rely on the concerted efforts of member states to effectively tackle this crucial challenge. This brings me to the third topic, safety. Safety is an integral part of our many operations, and it is a critical responsibility for our leaders. It's also a topic of great importance to the board. We have come a very long way to bring down incidents in most parts of our businesses over the years....
However, despite progress, the tragic loss of four people working for Maersk in 2023 underscores the risks associated with our operations, and there's still more work to be done. We are painfully aware of our responsibility to provide a safe workplace every day. This brings me to the financial review of 2023. The financial results, which were in line with the guidance provided throughout last year, include revenues of $51 billion, and a net profit after tax of $3.9 billion. Cash flow from operating activities amounted to $9.6 billion. Our gross CapEx for the year was $3.6 billion. During the year, a record $14 billion of cash was returned to shareholders through dividends of $10.9 billion, and through share buybacks of $3.1 billion.
At the end of 2023, our liquidity reserve stood at approximately $24 billion. Based on these financial results for 2023, the board has proposed a dividend for 2023 of DKK 515 per share, which is in line with our dividend policy. The total amount paid out to shareholders in the last three years, if including share buybacks and dividends, equals approximately DKK 180 billion, or $27 billion. As communicated in February, given the challenging macro outlook, it has been decided to suspend the share buyback. At the same time, the board announced the intent to demerge and spin off the towage activities, called Svitzer, as a standalone listed company on Nasdaq Copenhagen, with shares distributed pro rata to A.P. Moller - Maersk shareholders. The distribution of the Svitzer Group shares offers immediate value to shareholders.
This move is very much in line with steps we have taken in recent years under our strategy to simplify the structure and activities of A.P. Moller-Maersk, so we focus on container shipping, terminals, and logistics activities. The demerger is to be approved by the shareholders. We therefore plan to have an extraordinary general meeting scheduled for April 26, 2024. The details of the demerger will be available when notice to convene the extraordinary general meeting is published. We are, on an annual basis, conducting board evaluations to improve the effectiveness of the board. In this respect, the nomination committee of the board has carried out a review of how to strengthen the capabilities of the board. I am delighted to share that for this year, the board has nominated Allan Thygesen as a new director of the board.
Allan is today the CEO of Docusign, a listed company in the U.S.. He's had a long career, including at Google, where he was the president of Americas. He holds extensive leadership experience in digital businesses and of digital transformations, and Allan comes with strong references. I know that, remuneration is a matter of importance to many of our shareholders. The remuneration report, available on our website, discloses the remuneration of our executive board and board of directors. We, of course, also welcome any questions on this topic today. This brings me to the closing of my speech. Geopolitics introduces considerable uncertainty to our group's outlook. More than 60 countries, including half of the world's population, will choose new governments this year against a backdrop of deepening polarization and rising government debt levels.
Many countries' evolving economic, industrial, environmental, and trade policies will have a significant bearing on global logistics. We are concerned about the deteriorating political ability to resolve conflicts peacefully. Military conflicts have reached the highest level in decades, and we are deeply saddened by the loss of lives. 2023 ended with multiple distressing attacks on cargo ships in the vicinity of the Red Sea, including on Maersk vessels. In these times, the safety of our colleagues, not least our seafarers, is always at the forefront of our minds. As we look back on 2023, let me express my sincere gratitude to our executive team and many colleagues across the group for their relentless efforts and unwavering dedication to provide our customers and our local communities with reliable and sustainable services. I'm also grateful to my colleagues on the board for their valuable stewardship and governance.
Finally, let me convey a big thanks to our many partners and customers, who support our company in good times and in challenging times. Thank you.
Thank you to the chair for the management report for 2023, and the presentation of the annual report for 2023 as well, including the presentation of the proposal for the appropriation of the profit and the distribution of dividend, as well as the remuneration report for 2023. I note that the report, the annual report, is signed by the board of directors and the executive management, and that the auditors has issued an unqualified opinion of the annual report, which appears from page 122 and page 124 of the company's report for 2023. I also note that the remuneration report for 2023 was appended to the notice convening the general meeting, and has been available to the shareholders at the website as from the date of the notice was published, and that was also enlightened by the chair at his speech.
As stated by the chair, the Board of Directors propose, propose a total dividend of 515 DKK per share, and that is a share of 1,000 DKK. I will now open the floor for questions and comments from shareholders. I will use this occasion to introduce the shareholder's voice, which was also a part of last year's annual meeting. The shareholder's voice will read out loud the comments and questions received from shareholders. Questions and comments will be read out loud as phrased by the shareholders. It is Morten Butler who acts as the voice and the face of the shareholder's voice. Please welcome the shareholder's voice. We have, prior to the general meeting, received five contributions from shareholders.
The first contribution is from ITF, that's the International Transport Workers' Federation, and I'll now give the floor to the shareholder's voice, who will present the contribution from ITF. Please, ITF.
Thank you, Niels. The International Transport Workers' Federation welcomes the opportunity to speak to A.P. Moller - Maersk executives and shareholders today. We are the voice of 18.5 million transport workers in over 700 transport trade unions across the globe, from over 150 different countries. Transport workers are the lifeblood of the global economy, linking critical supply chains, markets, and societies, keeping our world moving. Our members' on-the-ground experience and expertise make the ITF one of the world's leading transport authorities. Maersk, a leading maritime conglomerate, is succeeding in becoming an integrated end-to-end transportation provider, focusing on expanding business into shoreside logistics. This expansion comes with many opportunities, but also significant risks.
Inland transport and logistics often involve extensive and complex contracting change, which the experience of ITF members and various research identifies can lead to downward pressure on workers' pay, conditions, health, and safety, and lack of transparency. This can result in severe labor and human rights violations, and legal liability for lead companies. At the same time, the more complex the contracting chains are, the more difficult it is for lead companies to fully understand or have an overview of the risks they're responsible for addressing. There's an overlap between the sectors Maersk is expanding into and ITF's membership in road, rail, and warehousing. Our already well-established relationship in maritime sectors, ports, ships, and tugs, has proven to be mutually beneficial and cooperative.
The ITF wishes to further develop this relationship and invites Maersk to participate in open conversation with our affiliated trade unions so that they are consulted in the process of expansion. We're confident that our affiliates' first-hand knowledge of conditions in Maersk's shore-based operations can help mitigate any significant risks, and become a leader in human rights, due diligence, and supply chain accountability, at a time when the related legal frameworks are being strengthened globally. According to both the Ethical Trading Initiative and the Committee on Workers' Capital, employer engagement with trade unions has significant positive potential for companies and their shareholders. Meaningful dialogue builds trust among the workforce, ensures workplaces are safe, enables reliable audits of labor code non-compliance, improves staff retention, leads to better business decisions, promotes equality, supports access to learning and skills, saves money, and increases productivity.
For Maersk to ensure its operations in these new sectors make good business sense, Maersk must ensure trade unions have a seat at the table. It is a fact, and we're addressing investors here today who agree, consumers and shareholders are demanding ethical consumption. As we have highlighted at previous AGMs, performance on respect for labor rights has not always been consistent across Maersk's activities. For this reason, we're disappointed that the board is not supporting the well-thought-through shareholder proposal by AkademikerPension and LD Fonde. Adopting the mature and thorough approach to reporting on the company's approach to human rights due diligence, which these shareholders propose, including sustainable supply chains, will enable the company to demonstrate clearly that it is meeting the EU's minimum social safeguards for sustainable finance.
Through Maersk's transition and expansion, it's crucial that jobs are protected and new opportunities for decent work are created for the future workforce. As Svitzer is de-merged from Maersk, uncertainty looms over the future of the towage subsidiary workforce. ITF has heard reports of casualization and victimization of trade union activists. We look forward to raising these issues further at the emergency shareholder meeting next month regarding the de-merger. Additionally, our affiliated trade unions have raised concerns at ports where Maersk holds significant stake through APM Terminals. Maersk has committed to uphold third-party labor supply policies. However, we have had reports from around the world that Maersk is not living up to its professed standards on social dialogue and equality measures. In Bremerhaven Seaport, a joint venture between APM Terminals and Eurogate, our affiliate is in dispute to ensure the automation process abides by the existing collective bargaining agreement.
Maersk must take responsibility and adhere to applicable collective agreements and respect existing social partnerships. APM Terminals holds 75% shares in Gateway Terminals India, where workers are consistently being outsourced when they should be directly employed. In three Colombo Harbour terminals, the lack of proper facilities for women undermines Maersk's commitment to equality and promoting women in the maritime industry. In a time of great uncertainty and global unrest, the ITF stands with its members in hopes for a world of peace and prosperity, from the Middle East to Eastern Europe, East Africa to Southeast Asia. Until then, as social partners, we must come together to protect those most vulnerable. The junta in Myanmar needs foreign exchange to buy weapons, ammunition, and fuel. The main source of foreign exchange is exports, garments in particular, but also gems, wood, and other commodities.
Disrupting this source of foreign exchange would make it much harder for the regime to sustain itself. Maersk must not throw a lifeline to the regime through its operations. A regime that not only persecutes union activists, but that demands its workers abroad, including seafarers, remit 25% of their foreign currency, foreign currency income through the country's banking system at an exchange rate that is 40% below market rate. Finally, we welcome Maersk's decision to enter the Gemini Cooperation with Hapag-Lloyd, as there is an opportunity for both companies to work jointly in raising standards in the maritime industry. The dialogue between Maersk and ITF during the Montreal Dockers dispute was positive, resulting in a collaborative strategy to return lashing to shoreside workers. We congratulate Maersk for its decision to protect its seafarers, and that lashing and unlashing remain dockers' work.
We hope that Maersk can encourage Hapag-Lloyd to do the same. If Maersk can find a solution, so should Hapag-Lloyd. We urge Maersk to redouble and press again for a level playing field with its new liner partners, Hapag-Lloyd, who ought to share the same principles for safety of their crew, but have so far disappointingly failed to uphold. Although we find it regretful that shareholders are not meeting in person, we nonetheless appreciate the opportunity to share our statement at the AGM. The collaboration between the ITF and Maersk has the potential to set a precedent for labor relations in the industry. Tick box exercises, deeming workers as the most valuable asset in a company, are not enough. Meaningful action by the employer, including empowerment of the workforce through positive dialogue with trade unions, will, without a doubt, also contribute to the success of the company. Thank you.
Thank you, ITF. The CEO, Vincent Clerc, will reply ITF. Please, Vincent Clerc.
Thank you, and we appreciate the opportunity that ITF has taken to address this AGM. We thank them for their statement, and I would like to provide the following answers. We do recognize the constructive relationship between both our organizations. Our expansion in logistics and services does not change that we will continue to seek positive cooperations with ITF and its affiliates. We are fully committed to our responsibility to respect fundamental rights of our employees. In addition, we have taken measures to address possible risks with regard to third-party labor. Example is the introduction of a new global standards on third-party labor, which came into effect in 2023. We acknowledge that ITF has significant experience in different parts of transport and logistics sector and welcome any feedback and input that ITF wishes to share with us.
We remain prepared to have meaningful dialogue with ITF on all relevant topics. We are committed to providing adequate disclosure on human rights due diligence, and will further elaborate our position towards the shareholder proposal on human rights disclosure when this is to be discussed under agenda H(5). Svitzer will likely soon become an independent, stock-listed company. There is no reason to assume that this change in their setup will change the values to treating employees in a decent and respectful way, in accordance with fundamental labor rights. This includes showing respect for the freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining. We do not recognize, however, the suggestions made by ITF that APM Terminals is not living up to its standards on social dialogue and equality measures.
It would not be appropriate to discuss the individual case mentioned by ITF during this meeting, but we want to underline that APM Terminals is committed to what is called just transition when introducing new technologies, and makes conscious and careful decisions when work is outsourced to third parties. Finally, we would like to invite ITF to engage into a conversation with us about their findings in terminals in Colombo. With regard to Myanmar, we would like to mention the following. Since the coup in 2021, we have been following the situation in the country very closely, prioritizing the health and well-being of our employees, while continuing to support customers and contributing to the local economy. It is our strong belief that global trade can be a powerful enabler for development when carried out in a sustainable and responsible way.
We have carefully considered how to remain engaged in Myanmar while honoring our commitments to respect international standards of human rights. We have conducted heightened human rights due diligence ongoing to assess human rights risks and how Maersk's management systems are preventing or mitigating such risk. Our assessment and preliminary conclusion is that it is possible for Maersk to continue operating responsibly in Myanmar, but we will continue to monitor the situation there closely. Maersk looks forward to a successful collaboration with Hapag-Lloyd that will start in February 2025. This cooperation is expected to be a positive for all stakeholders in both companies, including employees and their representative. Maersk is not, however, in a position to interfere with the internal employee and labor relations matter of an independent company like Hapag-Lloyd.
We have full confidence that the way Hapag-Lloyd will manage its operations are safe and guarantee the welfare of their seafarers. We look forward to regular engagement with ITF and between ITF and Maersk in 2024 and beyond.
Thank you, Vincent Clerc, for the ITF reply. And the next contribution is from the shareholders, AkademikerPension and LD Fonde, and I will now give the floor to the shareholders' voice, who will present their contribution. Please.
Thank you, Niels. This statement is given on behalf of AkademikerPension and LD Fonde. Again, this year, we would like to address the issue of the fully virtual setup of this year's Annual General Meeting. While hosting a fully virtual general meeting may have some financial and administrative advantages, it is diluting shareholder rights and the democratic purpose of the Annual General Meeting. The fact that this statement is being read aloud by a Maersk representative instead of a shareholder underlines this issue. We strongly encourage Maersk to revert to a hybrid setup with both in-person and online participation for next year's Annual General Meeting. Alternatively, shareholders must be allowed to speak themselves, either by pre-recorded video or live on screen, in order to ensure the preservation of shareholder rights going forward.
Thank you, AkademikerPension and LD Fonde, and the chair will reply to this contribution. Please, Mr. Chairman.
Yes, thank you for the statement and for your engagement. Let me be very, very clear. We have absolutely no intention to dilute shareholder rights. On the contrary, what we want to make sure is that all our shareholders have the same access and the same opportunity to engage and to take part of our AGMs. We actually think the digital AGMs is a better platform for our shareholders, keeping this in mind. Many of our shareholders are not based in Denmark. We find your comment about upgrading the technology platform we're currently using a sort of valid observation. I very much appreciate that feedback. Your comment that you want shareholders to be allowed to speak for themselves, either by pre-recorded video or live on screen, is well noted.
We decided not to do it this year, but we are reviewing the matter. In fact, we're engaging with chairs and companies here in Denmark to see what their best practices are, but we're also engaging with companies in other countries in Europe. Some of these countries, you can say, are more progressed when it comes to digital AGMs, and we try to learn from them and figure out how we can further improve this format. Thank you.
Thank you to the chair for the response to AkademikerPension and LD Fonde. The next contribution is from the Climate Action 100+ Initiative, and I'll now give the floor to the Shareholder's Voice, who will present their contribution. Please, Shareholder's Voice.
Thank you. Dear board members, dear fellow shareholders, this statement has been prepared by AkademikerPension and EOS at Federated Hermes, who have been co-leading the engagement with Maersk under the investor-led initiative, Climate Action 100+, since December 2017. Climate Action 100+ has over 700 investor signatories and engages with investee companies to achieve three goals: to implement a strong governance framework for the management of climate-related risks, to act to reduce emissions across value chains in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement, and achieving net zero by 2050, and to enhance corporate disclosure and the implementation of climate transition plans to protect and create long-term value for shareholders.
We have appreciated our positive and responsive engagement with Maersk to date, which has followed the company's journey in setting an ambitious climate strategy to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040, alongside interim targets that have recently been validated by the Science Based Targets Initiative, as aligned with the 1.5-degree Celsius goal of the Paris Agreement. At the AGM last year, we welcomed the commitment demonstrated by the company's investments to enable the use of green, low-carbon methanol in the Ocean business. Yet, we also highlighted the importance of Maersk's, of Maersk demonstrating a commitment to achieving a just transition, including through assessing and mitigating the potential social and environmental risks associated with rapidly scaling the supply of low-carbon fuels. We were therefore pleased to see the 2023 sustainability report show that Maersk is continuing to mature its approach to managing these risks.
This includes using and improving a life cycle assessment for green methanol procurement that considers environmental and social impacts, as well as developing a specific green fuel sourcing due diligence framework. We hope to see future reporting demonstrate the implementation of these resources to achieve the necessary outcomes in enhancing the sustainability of the green fuel supply chain. At last year's AGM, we also raised the need for Maersk to provide further details on its strategy to manage the physical climate risks that have been identified through recent scenario analysis exercises as having potentially financially material consequences for the business. We support the additional reporting provided in the ESG fact book on the conclusions of the scenario analysis, and reassurance that all majority-owned terminals and warehouses are part of a loss prevention program.
Given the increasingly significant consequences of physical climate events, we request further details of this loss prevention program, including specific short and medium-term targets, medium-term actions, and its contribution to building a resilient and responsive business. Finally, despite the key steps taken already by Maersk, we understand the importance of public policy around the world in enabling and supporting the energy transition. This has driven, another focus in our engagement on Maersk's interaction with public policy, both directly and indirectly, as a key actor in the shipping industry and the global economy. A number of positive steps have already been taken, and a clear commitment to align the company's policy engagement with the 1.5 degrees Celsius goal of the Paris Agreement is an important guiding principle.
As always, the impact is in the execution, and so we request the publication of a review of the company's key climate policy positions, globally and in key markets, against this guiding principle of 1.5 degree Celsius alignment. This will support greater compliance with the global standard on responsible climate lobbying and better facilitate a public policy environment that enables a successful transition to net zero. We look forward to our continued dialogue and remain committed to supporting the company's progress across these increasingly urgent issues. Thank you.
Thank you, Climate Action 100+, and again, it's the chairman who will reply for that.
I actually think, we should let the CEO comment.
Yep. So from the Maersk side, we also appreciate the positive engagement with Climate Action 100+. And we thank AkademikerPension and the Federated Hermes for recognizing our commitment taken in our climate roadmap. With regard to the request for further details on managing physical climate risks and potential financially material consequences to our business, we can confirm that we expect to provide more disclosure on this topic in annual reporting going forward, in line with the requirement of the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive. We fully agree that ambitious public policy is critical to enable the support for the green transition, not least in the hard to abate sector such as ours.
It is for the same reason that we take such an active role in advocating for high ambition and strong, supportive, market-based measure from the IMO to deliver on shipping's net zero commitments. The Green Balance Mechanism, mentioned by Robert in his speech earlier, is an example of a crucial regulatory enabler that we need in shipping. In short, it is a suggested fee applied on burning fossil fuel, where the proceeds are being rerouted towards the vessels burning green fuel. The more you pollute, the more you pay, and the more green fuel you use, the larger the reward. Maersk supports the Green Balance Mechanism because it makes the green choice easier for our customers and helps level the playing field between fossil fuels and green fuels, which is something Maersk has been asking for, for a long time.
Let me end by saying that we also recognize the need for companies to be transparent on their climate efforts, and that we can confirm that we will continue to provide additional disclosures on our key climate position, and how these relate to the principle of 1.5-degree alignment. Thank you.
Thank you, Vincent Clerc, for the answer to the Climate Action 100 contribution. The next contribution is from Danish Shareholders Association, and I'll now give the floor to the shareholders' voice, who will present their contribution. Please.
Thank you, Niels. A.P. Moller - Maersk has, for many years, been a popular Danish public share, which has been valued by private Danish investors all over the country. At the same time, we have experienced that interest in investment has increased significantly in the Danish public in recent years. And that is precisely why the interaction between company and investors, society, is even more important today than ever before. Also, from an ESG perspective, where social responsibility can be expected to play a greater role in the years to come, also for A.P. Moller - Maersk. All the more, it is regrettable, even criticizable, that A.P. Moller - Maersk has chosen to maintain that it only holds an online general meeting, which does not allow us to meet face-to-face and get the dialogue that the company was once a champion for.
This year, we also experience that the use of Danish language has been left out, with no interpretation available, which, again, seems to reduce the interaction with the surrounding society. Let me initially ask the management to elaborate on whether it is correctly understood that the possibility of holding a purely digital general meeting was introduced in due course, in connection with the COVID-19 restrictions, as an emergency legal measure? From the Danish Shareholders Association, we're concerned, just as I know a number of larger investors are, that you cannot find the resources to hold a combined physical and digital general meeting, as we see the majority of Danish companies do. We still hope that it can happen again next year in a format that points forward and, for example, just like Novo Nordisk, contains both a general meeting and an in-depth shareholder meeting.
Let me turn to my comments on the report. First of all, thanks to the management and all the many employees for a great effort in 2023, and thanks for thorough reporting on the development throughout the year. It is appreciated. There's no doubt that it is a complex business that must be run and developed in a time with many challenges. Of course, we must not forget that we're coming from a couple of good years, which hopefully have given strength and also good yields to the shareholders. But now we're facing difficult times, and this leads me to my two follow-up questions. A large part of the problem with falling freight rates is, as we understand it, overcapacity in the market. It is a known phenomenon and also something that has been discussed for years in the industry.
I would like to ask the management to elaborate on the considerations that the company has naturally made over the years, when the decisions were taken to invest in ships that have, on one hand, strengthened the company's position, but also contributed to the overcapacity. I would also like to hear the management's forecasts for how the capacity is expected to develop in the longer path towards 2035. Forecasts for the company's earnings in the coming years show that we must expect some tough years. Other listed companies in similar situations have announced that they do not expect to pay dividends for the coming years. Can we expect a similar announcement for A.P. Moller - Maersk, or will dividends continue to be expected also from 2025 onwards? And if so, should a loan be taken to pay these out?
Let me finish on behalf of the private shareholders in the Danish Shareholders Association, to wish the company all the best in the coming years, and to hopefully meet again face to face later this year, and for our traditional General Assembly in 2025.
Thank you to the Danish Shareholders Association. There were two specific questions, and I understand that the chair would answer both of them?
So I will comment on two of the statements made, and then I will pass on the word to our CEO, who can comment on the specific questions. But I just wanna make sure there's no misunderstanding here. So the reason why we have a digital AGM has been explained, and I also want to stress that, yes, we are a company based in Denmark, but we have a very international workforce. We have many nationalities holding shares in A.P. Moller - Maersk, and we think it's good and fair that we hold this AGM in English. With that said, it's my understanding that the entire AGM is actually carried out with interpretation to Danish.
I'm sort of looking at my colleagues here on the corner. But this AGM is also available for those who only would like to Danish. We have a live interpretation, to my understanding. And I also just wanna sort of comment on the statement that we don't have any face-to-face meetings and the suggestion to follow some other companies that have a general meeting as well as a in-depth shareholder meeting. Last year, we had an in-depth shareholder meeting. We invited all shareholders to see Laura Maersk, only 200 meters from where this studio is. And in connection with that, we had the entire management team giving several presentations.
I believe there were four dedicated sessions with management, and in addition to that, we had a number of other activities to provide information to our shareholders. It was a very, very extensive program for our shareholders. And we will consider if we should do something similar again. So the face-to-face meetings were carried out in 2023. I think that just brings me to the comment around the dividend. And there we have a dividend policy which has been shared with the public, and it's very clear in the sense that we say that we have an annual payout ratio of 30%-50% of underlying net earnings. So the dividend payment in future is a function of the underlying net result.
With that, I give the word to our CEO to comment on the rest of the questions.
Yeah. Thank you, Robert. It is true, as was noted in the statement, that a large order book for the shipping industry has caused significant pressure on the freight rates that have fallen significantly since the good years of 2021 and 2022, and have fallen actually at unsustainable level. We expect an influx, we have seen an influx of capacity of 9% in 2023. We expect another 11% to come in this year, and then another 7% in 2025. That is more than 700 new ships that have come into the market between 2023 and here in 2024, and another 150 that will come in 2025.
Against that background, our fleet has actually remained constant in size, so we have not participated to the increase of order book and fleet that have contributed to this oversupply of tonnage that will be with us for a couple of years. We have made some investment in ships over these years. These are linked to simply the renewal and the replacement of our existing fleet, where we actually take some of the old ships that we have and scrap them, and replace them with the new one that run on green methanol, and contribute also to executing our energy transition roadmap, as we have promised. Now, we are still faced with a problem that we have not created, but that we need to face and that we will need to be part of solving.
Demand growth, slow steaming, ship recycling will partly offset or more will have to offset over time this overcapacity so that we can recover, so that we can get back to a healthy earnings level. What this mean for us in the meantime is that we need to continue to have a very strong focus on our cost management, really looking for profits and asset utilization. This is where delivering best-in-class service to our customers and the new collaboration of Gemini will greatly assist us mitigating some of the risks that are linked to this difficult industry situation. Thank you.
Thank you to the chair and to the CEO for contributing to answers to the Danish Shareholders Association's various questions. That brings us to the last contribution, which is handed in or submitted prior to the shareholders' meeting, and that is again from the shareholders, AkademikerPension and LD Fonde. I will now give the floor to Shareholders' Voice, who will present the contribution from AkademikerPension and LD Fonde. Please. Thanks.
This statement is given on behalf of AkademikerPension and LD Fonde. First, we would like to commend the board for adjustments made in recent years that have brought the company closer to best practice with respect to the size of board remuneration and how voting on the remuneration report is executed. However, we still find room for improvement when it comes to transparency and size of remuneration for executive management. Excessive variable pay may lead to aggressive risk-taking, and we will not support remuneration policies that offer more than 200% bonus potential. With respect to transparency, it is important that remuneration reports provide visibility into the dynamics and reasons behind bonuses paid... We still do not find this to be the case, and therefore, we cannot support the remuneration report.
Thank you for that, the AkademikerPension and LD Fonde, and that is the chair would give remarks to that, please.
Yes. So thanks for the good dialogue on this topic. The views shared by you and many other shareholders are certainly taken very seriously in the boardroom, and we have a dedicated remuneration committee that follows up on these points. I've also had the pleasure of meeting a few different shareholders who share their perspectives on remuneration. I think the general view, to summarize the overall trend, is that there is a strong push from most shareholders, and certainly also the board, that there's a close link between the performance of the company and the payout to our executives. So over the years, we've reduced the share of base pay, and we increased the share of variable pay.
And we think that is the right development, and we know that many shareholders support that development. Now, when it comes to the specific ceilings you're referring to, that's maybe warrants a longer conversation. We, of course, spend significant time benchmarking our compensation packages and also trying to understand what is required to give the right kind of carrot to our executive teams. For the STIs, so the short-term incentives, we actually have a ceiling of 200% for our CEO. For the long-term incentive program, it's slightly higher than that. It goes up to 300%. But these are sort of the max payouts. So if you look at the last few years' development, we had a team and a company that delivered historic high profits.
And even during this years, we did not reach the 200% STI ceiling. So I think in practical terms, we are seeing very reasonable payouts. But it's of course important for us to continue to be competitive here because we compete for a very international talent pool. We believe that we have a very transparent remuneration report. I appreciate that there is a view that we should share even more when it comes to some of the KPIs, but this is a careful balance. We don't want to share too much because we know also our competitors are reviewing these documents. So the board has concluded that the kind of transparency we now offer is sufficient.
But thanks for the views and for your input on this topic.
Thank you to the chair, Robert Maersk Uggla, for the reply to AkademikerPension and LD Fonde. That was the last contribution submitted prior to the general meeting, and we'll now turn to the contributions which have been handed in during the general meeting and that have been handed in via the AGM Portal, for which I refer to shareholders who want to make comments or give questions or put questions forward. The next question or the comment is from Critical Shareholders, and I give the floor to the shareholders' voice, who on behalf of Critical Aktionærer, will present their contribution. Please.
Thank you. As many times before, Critical Shareholders will focus on the CO2 emissions from Maersk activities. Although we have acknowledged Maersk initiatives, we have to say at least, at last, last year, that it is not moving. Economic Weekly has made an overview of CO2 emissions from the shipping company's own activities, called Scope 1. It shows that it has not been possible to reduce the company's direct CO2 emissions over the past 10 years. Not good when you remember that the climate issue has been high on the company's agenda since 2008, after the issue had been raised by Critical Shareholders the year before. In the first years, little happened, but since 2013, development has stalled. In fact, emissions have increased slightly.
If you look at the company's total emissions, Scope 1, 2, and 3, the entire company's value chain, it is not going well with reducing emissions. A slight reduction in 2023, but this is against the background of an upward revision of the company's emissions in 2022. Maersk efforts needs to be improved, and it underlines that it was a mistake to pay record yields to the shareholders instead of prioritizing climate action. The company's responsibility is great, with total emissions up to twice as large as all of Denmark's emissions. At last year's meeting, we criticized that Maersk had worked actively to ensure that shipping was not covered by the 15% tax imposed by the OECD on multinationals. Since then, it has emerged that Maersk has also opposed an international EU agreement on a tax on CO2 emissions from ships in the EU.
Again, the shipping company had persuaded the Danish state to work for the shipping company's view that the tax should only apply to internal transport within the EU. This time it failed. The EU adopted an international CO2 tax for ships.... Will the management regret this attempt to thwart an international initiative to reduce the shipping company's CO2 emissions?
Thank you to Kritiske Aktionærer for their contribution, and comments will be given by the CEO, Vincent Clerc, please.
Yes, thank you. And I want to re-emphasize the fact that we take our contribution to the energy transition and the plans that we have put forward for the Maersk's energy transition very, very seriously. We acknowledge that we are in a climate crisis, and we are committed to do our share to reach net zero in 2040, and to deliver on our ambitious science-based goal already in 2030. But we cannot do it alone, and to succeed, we are dependent on working with the ecosystem, in this case, the IMO, that we are part of, and including customers, also suppliers and industry peers and regulators.
We talked, before, also in Robert's speech, about this Green Balance Mechanism, which is actually not an attempt from Maersk to oppose legislation from IMO, but an attempt to have this IMO—the IMO promulgate something that will truly move the needle and enable companies to make the right decision when it comes to energy transition. The need for climate action in this decade is well acknowledged, and, obviously, we have faced some setback. As you mentioned, during 2022, we had to sail faster because of congestion, and here in 2024, we face another setback, having to sail south of the Cape of Good Hope in Africa, which adds 13,000 kilometers to a loop between Asia and Northern Europe, and obviously will have a negative impact again on our carbon footprint.
However, the action and the tangible actions that we have taken with investments in green methanol vessels like Laura Maersk or Ane Maersk and the sister ships that will follow, as well as the deal that we have done with Goldwind in China, are true testaments of the seriousness of our efforts. We are committed to transparently reporting our greenhouse gas emission. This is what we have done and why we have committed to the science-based targets initiative, and we will continue to report on our progress toward net zero going forward.
Thank you, the CEO, for the answering of the Kritiske Aktionær's first question. The reason why I'm saying that is that the next question is also from Kritiske Aktionær, or Shareholders, and I give the floor to the shareholder's voice, please.
Thank you. We have a question about a looming environmental disaster from the steel rolling mill in Frederiksværk. Leakages from the abandoned Slag Mountain threaten to pollute Roskilde Fjord and the Kattegat. Maersk was the main shareholder in the rolling mill when Slag Mountain was created. Can we get a guarantee that it will not foot the bill, but will pay its share when the threat of pollution is to be stopped?
Thank you to Kritiske Aktionærer, Critical Shareholders. There's a specific question, and it's the CEO, Vincent Clerc, who will address that, please.
Thank you. So we have so far not been made aware by the authorities about a potential pollution issue, but we recently received an invitation from the regional authorities to participate in a meeting about this. We're happy to discuss the issue and to handle a potential environmental threat with all relevant parties.
Thank you, Vincent Clerc, for the answer to the second question from Critical Shareholders. I have one contribution left, and that is Lars Engelhardt, and I please give the floor to the chair, to the Shareholder's Voice, via or being Lars Engelhardt. Please.
Thank you. Thank you for your professional way of doing business while thinking about both employees, the environment, and shareholders. Thanks for making the annual meeting electronic. Thank you for the invitation to visit Laura Maersk. Continue the good work.
Thank you. And there is coming in additional submissions now, and the next one is from Jan Raczak, and it is apparently in Danish, and it will be read out in Danish, and it will be answered in English. So, I hand over the floor to the shareholder's voice, please.
Thank you. [Foreign language] ?
And thank you for this question put forward by Jan Raczak. And for the English-speaking audience, it's a question about what is the cost for not sailing through the Suez. And that will be the CEO, Vincent Clerc, who will respond to that, please.
Yes, thank you. So, the cost of having to sail an extra 13,000 kilometers between Asia and Europe and a significant deviation on many of our services will remain quite high for as long as the safe passage through the Red Sea cannot be guaranteed. That is why not only have we had to face these extra costs, but we have also had to have significant discussions with our customers to pass these costs on to them and therefore get remuneration for these or coverage for these extra costs. This is in particular network costs. We have to add ships to sail these extra kilometers. We also have to burn more fuel, as we mentioned in one of the previous questions, as we have to sail these extra kilometers.
The impact on our customers has been significant already, both in terms of delays and in terms of extra costs. They are facing longer trips, additional charges, and we are working diligently with them at mitigating as much of the impact on their supply chain as possible.
But these efforts do come as a premium, because these are significant, extra costs that we are faced with, and will probably be faced with for quite some months.
Thank you to Vincent Clerc, the CEO, for answering the question in Danish from Jan Raczak. I understand that some more questions and contributions are coming in, and we're just waiting for the ones to arrive here at A.P. Moller - Maersk, and I understand it is coming now. So, it's a question again from Critical Shareholders, and I hand over the floor to the shareholders' voice, please.
Thanks. Does the company accept the figures for CO₂ emissions in the years from Economic Weekly, which we mentioned?
That will be Vincent Clerc, who will address that, please.
Yeah, thank you for that question. So we do not have the numbers for Economic Weekly readily available, but offhand, we have no reason to believe that the numbers that are being referred to. I think we do our own reporting of our emissions. It's very serious. As we mentioned, the Science-Based Initiative, which is the most rigorous way of calculating, and that are the right numbers in our book to look at.
Thank you to Vincent Clerc, and I have no indication or messages about further contribution. Is there any contribution coming in or on its way? It does not look like that, and by that, I will close the debate. By that, I will also take that as a sign of approval, and that is also supported by the vote cast prior to the general meeting.
By that, I will actually put to the record that the meeting have adopted the board of directors' report on the company's activities in the past financial year, that the shareholders' meeting have adopted the annual report for 2023, that the resolution to discharge the board of directors and the executive management have been adopted, and the adoption also of the appropriation of profit and distribution of dividend, and finally, the adoption of the annual remuneration report for 2023. Thereby, A to E on the agenda is closed, and that bring us natural to item number F. F regards the election of members of the board of directors. According to Article 3 of the Articles of Association, members of the board of directors are appointed for a term of 2 years.
Pursuant to the Articles of Association, Robert Maersk Uggla, Marika Fredriksson, Thomas Lindegaard Madsen, and Julija Voitiekute do this year stand down from the board of directors. The board of directors proposes the re-election of the same, being Robert Maersk Uggla, Marika Fredriksson, Thomas Lindegaard Madsen, and Julija Voitiekute. Furthermore, the board of directors proposes that Allan Thygesen been elected a new member of the board of directors, and that was mentioned as a part of the chair's management report. And thus in all, the board proposes five candidates for the board. For the information on the candidates' qualifications, other managerial duties in commercial undertaking, demanding organizational assignment and independencies, I refer to the fact sheet on the candidate, which was appended to the notice convening the Annual General Meeting.
We have, prior to the general meeting, received a contribution from AkademikerPension and LD Fonde in this respect, and I will now give the floor to the Shareholder's Voice, who will present their contribution in this regard. Please.
Thanks. This statement is given on behalf of AkademikerPension and LD Fonde. With respect to board composition, the Danish Committee for Good Corporate Governance recommends, among other things, that board members are elected every year. The committee also recommends that the majority of members of board committees are independent. AkademikerPension and LD Fonde support both these recommendations and would like companies to adhere to them. We therefore do not support the chairman of committees and boards where independence is absent or election does not take place every year. At A.P. Moller - Maersk, we do not find a majority of independence in the Nomination and Remuneration Committee. Furthermore, members are elected every other year. As a result, we cannot support Robert Uggla's nomination.
Thank you to AkademikerPension and LD Fonde, and there are some comments which should be commented, and that will be the chair. Please, Mr. Chair.
Thank you. And thank you—Thanks for the statement. So listed companies in Denmark are required to provide a corporate governance statement as part of the annual report, and it's available on our website. The statement is based on the comply or explain principle. We comply with most of the recommendations. There are some recommendations we partly comply with, and then there are a few we don't comply with. When it comes to the tenure of our directors, it's been a long-standing tradition that you're elected for two years. It's never been an issue. It's never been brought up with the chair, and
... I've never come across any challenges related to have a two-year tenure. On the contrary, as also explained in our corporate governance statement, we actually believe it provides a good signal about the continuity required to be in a board. It takes a while before a director gets into the business, understanding the business, and of course, it takes a while before a director provides value as a director. So we believe it serves a good purpose to have a two-year tenure. We've had a few cases, exceptions, where someone has stepped down during the middle of this tenure, so after one year of a two-year period, when we had to do changes to the overall board composition, and it was never a problem asking a director to step down early.
So again, we don't, we don't see a problem with a two-year tenure.
Thank-
Oh, yeah. Yeah, when it comes to the other points about independence, I have to refer to the corporate governance statement.
Thank you, Mr. Chair, for answering the contribution from AkademikerPension and LD Fonde. Is there any other candidates, and is there anybody who wants to address the audience or the meeting in this respect? I have no indication as to that, and by that, there have been no proposal for other candidates, and by that, all the proposed candidates are rejected, reelected, reelected, and elected respectively as members of the board for a two-year term, and congratulations to all of you on the election. Consequently, the board of directors are composed of Robert Maersk Uggla, Marc Engel, Bernard L. Bot, Marika Fredriksson, Arne Karlsson, Thomas Lindegaard Madsen, Amparo Moraleda, Kasper Rørsted, Allan Thygesen, and Julija Voitiekute. That concludes item F on the agenda, and that bring us to the next one, item G, regarding the election of the company's auditor.
According to Article seven of the company's Articles of Association, the company's auditors is elected by the general meeting for a one-year term. The board of directors proposes the reelection of PricewaterhouseCoopers, Statsautoriseret Revisionspartnerselskab, as auditors of the company in respect of statutory, financial, and sustainability reporting. According to the EU regulation on statutory audit, I inform the audience that the proposal is in accordance with the recommendation provided by the audit committee, which is not affected by any third party and which has not been subject to any agreement with a third party, limiting the general meeting selection of an auditor.
And by that, I should inquire whether there should be any other candidate for this position, and I have no indication as to that, and by that, and consequently, I record that PricewaterhouseCoopers Statsautoriseret Revisionspartnerselskab is reelected as the company's auditor in respect of statutory, financial, and sustainability reporting. That concludes item G on the agenda and bring us to item H. Item H concerns proposals from the board of directors and by shareholders, and as mentioned in the beginning, there are six proposal in total. There are four separate proposals from the board of directors, which includes item H(1), which regarding the authorization to the board of directors to declare extraordinary dividend. H(2) is, concerns a reduction of the share capital.
H(3), regarding adoption of an indemnification scheme for members of the board of directors, and item H(4) is regarding a new Article 19 of the Articles of Association as a consequence of the proposed adoption of the indemnification scheme, regarding H(3). As H(3) and H(4) both concern indemnification scheme for the board members, we will deal with these two items jointly, and those items will also be discussed jointly. Additionally, there are two separate proposals from shareholders, and these are H(5), which is from AkademikerPension and LD Fonde, which is a proposal to disclose documentation regarding the company's human rights due diligence process. And finally, item H(6), which is a proposal from shareholders Lotta Aho and regarding enforcement of suppliers' code of conduct. And by that, we move to item H(1), which is a standard item familiar to the shareholders from many previous years.
The board of directors proposes that the general meeting authorize the company's board of directors for a period until the next Annual General Meeting to declare extraordinary dividend to the company's shareholders. And is there anyone in among the shareholders who want to contribute in this respect? And in the meanwhile, I can say, I could state that this resolution can be passed by a simple majority, and I have no indication as to any comments, and by that, I take it as a sign of adoption, which is also very much in line with the proxies and posted votes submitted prior to the general meeting. That bring us to the next proposal, which is H(2), and that's concerning a reduction of the company's share capital.
I generally refer to the notice convening the Annual General Meeting, but note that the board of directors proposes to reduce the company's share capital by cancellation of own shares of a total nominal value of DKK 1,740,773,000, divided into 355,555 A shares and 1,385,218 B shares, and that is also shares of DKK 1,000. The capital reduction will take place at a premium price of, that's Danish kroner, again, DKK 1,246.68, and Danish kroner, again, DKK 1,263.89 for A and B shares, respectively.
This reflects the average price at which the shares have been repurchased by the company. Following the share capital reduction, the company's share capital will amount to DKK 15,828,942,000. The proposal implies that Article 2.1 of the Articles of Association will be amended as set out in the notice to this general meeting. By that, I should ask if anybody wants to make comments or questions as to this issue? In the meanwhile, I can inform you that this requires adoption by at least two-thirds of the cast votes, and there's no questions coming in, and I take that as a sign of approval, which is I'm not, I'm, have no hesitation to accept as the proxies and the posted votes submitted prior to the shareholders' meeting.
To the shareholders' meetings, suppose this adoption. Thank you. The company's creditors will now be requested to file claims written within a four-week deadline through the Danish Business Authorities IT system, and that is a formal requirement. The completion of the share capital reduction and the amendment of the articles of Association will be registered with the Danish Business Authorities upon expiry of the deadline for the creditors' filing of claims. A company announcement will be published once the share capital reduction is completed. And by that, we are reaching item H(3) and H(4), which both concerns the indemnification of the board members, and therefore, these two items will be handled together, as mentioned in the beginning by me.
Under item H(3), the board of directors proposes that the company is allowed to indemnify the members of the board of directors on the terms set out in the notice convening this Annual General Meeting. Following a statement on indemnification of board members issued by the Danish Business Authorities in April 2023, the board of directors have reviewed the existing indemnification scheme, first adopted in March 2022. In order to enhance transparency regarding material terms and conditions regarding the indemnification scheme, the board of directors proposes to adopt an updated indemnification scheme to replace the current scheme. I can inform you that among the 25 most traded companies on the Nasdaq Copenhagen Stock Exchange, this has become common practice, and the updated terms of the scheme reflects a widely accepted standard.
I refer to the notice convening the Annual General Meeting for further detail regarding the disposal or proposal regarding the terms and conditions for the proposed indemnification scheme. Under item H(4), the Board of Directors proposes to amend the Articles of Association by adopting a new Article 19, reflecting the indemnification scheme as proposed under H or item H(3). I must again refer to the notice convening this general meeting for further detail, and also the exact wording on the Article 19 of the Articles of Association, as suggested. By that comment, or by that introduction, I should hear whether anybody wants to make comments or remark in this respect. I have no indication as to that.
and the H(3) could be or can be passed by a simple majority, whereby H(4), which is change to the Articles of Association, requires that two-thirds of the votes cast in favor. And I have no indication of any remarks, and I'll take that as a sign of approval and adoption, and that is highly supported by all the proxies and the postal votes submitted prior to the general meeting. So I establish that H(3) and H(4) have been adopted as proposed. That bring us to the next item on the agenda, and that is the contribution or the proposal brought forward by shareholders, and the first one is made by shareholder AkademikerPension and LD Fonde.
The shareholders' proposal proposes that in line with the company's commitment to respect human rights and in line with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, UNGP, the company and the directors be authorized and directed by the shareholders to publicly disclose sufficient documentation regarding the company's human rights due diligence process in accordance with the UNGP. I refer to the notice convening this Annual General Meeting for further details regarding the proposal, including specific information which have to be disclosed according to the proposal. By that, I will hand over the floor to the Shareholder's Voice, who will give the motivation for the proposal on behalf of AkademikerPension and LD Fonde. Please, Mr. Shareholder's Voice.
Thanks, Niels. This statement is given on behalf of AkademikerPension and LD Fonde. This is the second year in a row that we have filed a shareholder proposal encouraging Maersk to take the next step in the company's sustainability journey, to strengthen the company's public disclosures regarding human rights impacts and risks, and to ensure the company's continued leadership position on sustainability reporting. Since last year, we have, however, only witnessed a nominal, if any, improvement in Maersk's reporting on human rights, while other companies have invested in improving their reporting significantly in 2023. The pressure on companies to demonstrate respect for human rights is increasing as the link between long-term value creation and a prudent approach to human rights risks is becoming more and more established.
It is therefore increasingly important for companies and investors alike that companies demonstrate that they understand and navigate the business opportunities and risks related to the corporate duty to respect human rights and labor rights. Failure to do so may leave the company vulnerable to operational disruptions, litigation risks, and increased scrutiny by supervisory authorities, as well as reputational risk and loss of license to operate in the eyes of customers, employees, investors, and business partners. The corporate duty to respect human rights is derived from the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the UNGPs, adopted in 2011. The UNGPs have set out the international standard of practice for companies to respect international human rights by identifying, preventing, mitigating, remedying, and accounting for human rights impacts associated with their business activities. This process is commonly known as human rights due diligence.
Though a soft law requirement under international law, the corporate duty to respect human rights has been an expectation of companies since the UNGPs was adopted in 2011. This is particularly the case for companies that publicly subscribe to these international norms, companies like Maersk. This expectation has, in recent years, been underlined by the European Union's introduction of a range of new regulatory initiatives, which, in different ways, seek to address the impacts that businesses have on human rights and labor rights. And while these new regulatory initiatives represent a major step forward in ensuring corporate accountability, the legislative landscape is currently unclear due to political negotiations. It is, however, certain that in practice, the EU legislation will not entail the same high standard to respect human rights as is required by the UNGPs.
At this point in time, it is therefore paramount that Maersk remains ambitious and stay the course when it comes to transparency on human rights efforts. To be clear, we by no means consider Maersk a laggard in this field. We consider Maersk a leader in sustainability and responsible business practices. As investors, we appreciate both the societal concerns you address through your strategic objectives and the value we believe it will create for our investment. This proposal is part of a broader strive for more consistent and transparent disclosure on human rights due diligence and risk management from the market in general.... And we believe Maersk is well-positioned to lead the way to best practice.
We therefore encourage the board to support the strengthening of Maersk's human rights disclosures in line with the UNGPs ahead of next year's AGM, despite the board not finding it possible to support the proposal again this year. You may even consider doing as your fellow C25 company, Carlsberg, has done by publishing a separate human rights report. We look forward to continuing our dialogue, also on this matter, and to closely monitor the progress in Maersk's human rights disclosures in the coming years. Thank you.
Thank you to the Shareholder's Voice and to AkademikerPension and LD Fonde. I'll now give the floor to the Chair of the Board of Directors, who will present the Board of Directors' position on the proposal and the reason that the Board of Directors do not support the proposal. Please, Mr. Chairman.
Thank you. And thanks to AkademikerPension and LD Fonde for the dialogue and your commitment to these topics. We also appreciate what you highlight in terms of Maersk being a leader in sustainability and responsible business practices, and that you think we're well-positioned to lead the way to best practices. Let me stress that we are firmly committed to responsible business practices. This is not a function of reporting requirements. This is very much ingrained in our long-standing purpose, as well as in our company values. In fact, the founder of this very company and his son often stressed the importance of being a good corporate citizen.
When it comes to the actual disclosure requirements, we have in 2023, and also as outlined in the sustainability report of 2023, prepared for the CSRD, which our CEO, Vincent, mentioned before. So EU's Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive will have an extensive or requires extensive non-financial reporting, and it also covers the so-called double materiality assessment. And that will have to factor in human rights and labor rights. So this is a topic which we take very seriously. We have a dedicated committee in the board which spends time on this directive, and we're trying to understand how to report on it, for the fiscal year or reporting year and the financial year of 2024.
I hope that the reporting you will see in 2024 will satisfy your requirements. Thank you.
Thank you to the chair. Does anybody in the audience want to address question or give questions in this respect? I have no indication as to that, and such a proposal had to be adopted by a simple majority. Based on the proxies and postal votes submitted prior to the general meeting, I'm able to establish that the general meeting has not accepted the proposal. Thank you. That brings us to the final item on H, which is H-six, and that is a proposal submitted by the shareholder, Lotta Aho. Lotta Aho proposes that the company starts enforcing the suppliers' code of conduct with immediate effect, and terminates the contract with suppliers that breach the suppliers' code of conduct on an ongoing business basis.
Prior to the general meeting, I've noted that Lotta Aho is not presented at this general meeting, and in order to consider the proposal, a shareholder must motivate the proposal and take part of the subsequent debate. As Lotta Aho is not presented, I must ask the audience or the shareholders if there's any other shareholders who wants to assume the proposal and motivates it. As there's no indication to that, it seems nobody want to assume it, but there is one asking a question in... not in this respect, so nobody wants to assume this proposal, and by that, we have to move on to the next item on the agenda. I understand that there are one question coming in.
I have an indication, and that is Peter Walker, sorry, who wants to address a question, and I give the floor to Peter Walker via the Shareholder's Voice, please.
Thanks. Does the war in Ukraine have a negative effect on A.P. Moller results?
Thank you. And that is the CEO, Vincent Clerc, who will address that issue.
We do not expect any significant impact from the war in Ukraine on our result this year.
Thank you to Vincent Clerc, and that was, from my recollection, that was actually the final question submitted, and by that, the debate is closed, and by that, the agenda is completed... And by that, for me, is only to resign as meeting chair of the general meeting, and thank you all for an orderly and successful Annual General Meeting at A.P. Moller - Maersk, and thank you to the shareholders' voice for your valued effort. For closing remark, I will now pass the floor to the chair for the last time. Please, Mr. Chair.
Thank you. So let me start by conveying a big thanks to Niels for chairing today's Annual General Meeting. While we have just conducted a digital Annual General Meeting, as mentioned, giving equal access to all our shareholders, we are mindful, as raised during today's meeting, that we have shareholders with a significant interest to cease our activities and engage with our colleagues. As I highlighted, last year, shareholders were invited to visit the first container vessel designed to sail on green methanol, Laura Maersk, as it called Copenhagen, and again, not very far from here, just around the corner from where we're standing. In due course, we are planning to invite the public to one of our large next-generation methanol vessels.
This has not yet been finalized, but it's something we are considering, and I hope to be able to come back to our shareholders on a future event. With that said, we conclude today's Annual General Meeting. Thank you for your support, and thanks for your participation.