Riverstone Holding has invested US$200 million in the new tanker company, Ridgebury Tankers. Included in the agreement is for Ridgebury Management to invest US$5.7 million in itself.

Ridgebury is concentrating in the purchase and management of vessels in the tanker business. The additional funding will be used by the Connecticut-based company in acquiring different sizes of clean product carriers and the use of Suezmax boats.

Ridgebury is headed by its founder and Chief Executive Officer Bob Burke who has been in the shipping industry for more than thirty years. Mr Burke's broad experience in the shipping industry includes owning and managing the operations of companies from different shipping sectors, investments in direct equity and financing, chartering vessel activities and operations of tanker.

Mr Burke will be joined by Steve Fitzgerald, Kevin Bavolar who will be taking the post of Chief Finance Officer and Hew Crooks. Mr Burke and Mr Crooks have worked together at Great Circle Capital, a maritime equity investment fund while Mr Burke worked with Mr Bavolar and Fitzgerald at GE Capital.

Mr Bavolar notes "In a small organization such as Ridgebury it is imperative to have a team that has worked together before."