New management team at Torqeedo

Marine electric drive developer, Torqeedo, has appointed Fabian Bez as the company’s new chief executive officer (CEO).

Bez assumed day-to-day leadership of the company effective 1 October 2022. He will be joined by Heiko Vietmeier, who will serve as Torqeedo’s chief financial officer (CFO) starting 1 November. 

The new management team will replace Dr Markus Müller, CTO and CSO of Torqeedo’s parent company Deutz, and Dr Alf Harkort, who served as interim managing director for the company during the executive search process.

Bez has many years of expertise in strategic corporate development, including building up the electrification and battery production areas as vice president of e-solution and services at Webasto. As divisional CEO of Webasto Thermo and Comfort SE, he was also responsible for the end customer business and the leisure and marine segments. Most recently, Bez worked as an independent management consultant in the field of alternative drives and renewable energies.

Vietmeier most recently served as the CFO for Defontaine Group in France, a manufacturer of slewing bearings for wind turbines, transportation, forestry, machine tools, and marine and medical applications.

Dr Müller says: “The Deutz management board welcomes Fabian Bez and Heiko Vietmeier as the new management team for Torqeedo. We are confident they will leverage their extensive leadership experience to drive Torqeedo forward sustainably.”

“We would like to thank Dr Alf Harkort for his substantive contributions to Torqeedo and his impressive successes during the transition. We wish him the best of luck in his future endeavours,” says Dr Müller.

“There couldn’t be a better time to join Torqeedo,” Bez says. “I am looking forward to further developing this fast-growing company as we build the emission-free future of the marine industry.”