Stockholm (HedgeNordic) – The asset management arm of Norwegian pension provider KLP has hired Frederik Ness to fill the portfolio manager role for its market-neutral equity fund, KLP Alfa Global Energy. KLP brings on Ness from SEB to co-manage the fund alongside David Bhatti after long-serving portfolio manager Simon Johannessen left during the summer to pursue new opportunities.
Frederik Ness joins KLP with over six years of experience in equity research at SEB, where he specializes in the shipping sector. His previous roles also included working as a risk and business analyst at Western Bulk Chartering, a dry bulk shipping company. Ness follows in the footsteps of his new co-manager, David Bhatti, who previously served as a shipping analyst at SEB before joining KLP. Ness will officially begin his new role in February 2025.
The appointment of Ness follows Johannessen’s departure earlier this summer after nearly a decade of managing KLP Alfa Global Energy (read more). Johannesen had co-managed the KLP Alfa Global Energi fund alongside Torkel Aaberg since early 2015, with David Bhatti joining in August 2022 after Aaberg departed from KLP following 13 years at the firm.
KLP Alfa Global Energy is one of two hedge funds managed by KLP, employing a market-neutral approach within the energy sector. The fund has achieved strong returns in recent years, averaging 13.8 percent annually over the past five years, including a 16.4 percent gain in the challenging market conditions of 2022 and its best-ever annual return of 23.9 percent in 2020. KLP Alfa Global Energi is currently up 4.0 percent year-to-date through the end of October, marking its sixth consecutive year of positive returns.
