CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Thomas Spannagl (Chairman)
Since June 2015 Mr. Thomas Spannagl has been Managing Director of the SCHWENK Building Materials Group, headquartered in Ulm, Germany. In this position he is responsible for the cement, aggregates, concrete and concrete pump businesses in Germany, Austria, Hungary, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Latvia, Finland, Sweden, Norway and Namibia.
Between 2011 and 2015 Thomas held the position of Country CEO for Lafarge in Central Europe, which included five cement plants and the six markets of Austria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia and Slovenia in the form of a joint venture between Lafarge (70%) and Strabag (30%), having served as CEO for Lafarge Austria from 2008 to 2011.
From 2006 to 2008 Thomas was President and CEO of Systech Environmental Corporation, a wholly owned waste management subsidiary of Lafarge North America, located in Dayton, Ohio. Before that he spent two years working as Vice President of Resource Recovery of Lafarge Cement North America based in the headquarters in Herndon, Virginia. Before moving to the United States, he had served as Cement Plant Manager in Retznei, Austria.
His career at Lafarge began in 1997 in the Lafarge Perlmooser headquarters in Vienna, Austria, where he held the position of Supply Base Manager Central Europe.
Prior to joining Lafarge, Thomas worked for Philips Electronics for seven years. He is an Austrian citizen and a graduate of mechanical engineering of the University of Technology in Vienna, Austria. During college, he worked for BMW, where he also completed his thesis. Married and the father of two boys, Thomas and his wife live in Ulm, Germany.
Hans-Wilhelm Schütte (Managing Director)
Mr. Hans-Wilhelm Schütte is the Managing Director of Ohorongo Cement (Pty.) Ltd.
He is a Namibian citizen who returned from Central Europe to Namibia at the end of 2008. He has more than 25 years of experience in a financial environment and has a strong background in finance, sales and marketing activities. He joined the Schwenk Group in August 2008.
Before joining Ohorongo, Mr. Schütte held the position of Business Unit President at INBEV, one of the leading brewers in the world. During his time at INBEV, he liaised with a wide range of stakeholders – government, regulators, private shareholders, financial investors and audit committees.
Mr. Schütte’s 25 years of experience led him to South Africa, West Africa and West & Central Europe. His strategic experience in Central Europe included the implementation of a Route to Market Strategy and World Class Commercial program for the different countries.
He studied at the University of Stellenbosch, South Africa and holds a B.Comm degree (Cum Laude), B.Comm (Hons) Management degree and in May 1990, had a first time examination pass from the Institute of Chartered Management Accountants (C.I.M.A.). In 1990 he became an associate member of the Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA in London).
Stefan Leo Fink (Non-Executive Director)
Dr. Stefan Fink has been with the SCHWENK Group since January 2014 and is also a non-executive director of Ohorongo Cement (Pty) Ltd. He is a member of the Management Board of SCHWENK Zement and in charge of Finance, Controlling and Purchasing.
Before joining the SCHWENK Group, he worked for Dyckerhoff AG in Wiesbaden/Germany, a multinational producer of cement and ready-mixed concrete, for 25 years. From 2004 to 2013, he was a member of the Executive Board of Dyckerhoff AG and the Chief Financial Officer.
Dr. Fink studied at the Technical University in Aachen/Germany and obtained his Masters in Business and Engineering and a Ph. D. in Engineering.
Wendy Mathebula
Wendy Mathebula is a credit risk professional with extensive experience in deal origination, investment risk analysis, credit risk evaluation, monitoring and credit risk sanctioning;
Project and Corporate Finance in a wide range of sectors such as Energy, Mining, Industrial infrastructure in South Africa and rest of Africa;
Experience on the development and implementation of rating and pricing tools (PD, LGD, EAD) for different asset classes in Development Finance Institutions;
Development and management of special recovery funds for businesses that are in distress as a result of the Covid 19 Pandemic and those that were affected by the July 2021 Civil unrest;
Identification, assessment and management of Strategic risks and operational risks;
Strong Leadership skills that includes Talent Management, Performance Management, Employee engagement and Staff Development;
Key competencies include problem solving skills, analytical skills and presentation skills;
Excellent Project Management skills;
MBA from Wits Business School, Global Executive Programme from GIBS and Bcom Account from University of Cape Town.
Erik de Waal (Non-Executive Director)
Erik de Waal is the Senior Manager: Strategic Investments for Development Bank of Namibia, responsible for managing the Bank’s equity portfolio, managing the Project Preparation Fund and supporting the lending function with structured financing solutions.
As a seasoned professional with close to 20 years’ experience across mining, energy and banking combined, Erik is known for his diligent approach to research and analysis, his ability for innovative solution formulation, his structured and effective project execution and his commitment to client satisfaction.
Erik holds an MBA from the University of Cape Town, specialising in Equity Analysis, Portfolio Management, Planning New Ventures and Future Insight & Business Strategy. He also holds a Bachelors of Engineering in Electrical/Electronic from the University of Stellenbosch.
OWNERSHIP
Ohorongo Cement stands proudly as a registered Namibian company with an international footprint. Our roots firmly grounded in Namibia, we’re committed to enhancing our local ownership. Presently, our shares are held by esteemed entities like the Schwenk Group, the Development Bank of Southern Africa, the Development Bank of Namibia, and the Industrial Development Corporation.
