3i Benelux arm strengthens advisory board

3i Benelux has added two new names to its advisory board in the shape of Marc van Gelder – the CEO of pharmaceutical group OPG – and Marcel van Poecke – the founder and ex-CEO of Petroplus, a midstream oil company. The two will offer strategic insight in their specific fields of expertise to 3i’s portfolio companies, help the firm during the due diligence process and assist in identifying market opportunities.

Van Gelder has extensive international experience in the fields of strategy, retail marketing, logistics, e-commerce and IT. He has been the CEO of OPG since December 2005, and prior to this worked at Ahold, McKinsey & Company and MIP Venture Capital Fund in The Netherlands.

Van Poecke has worked in the oil & gas industry for over 20 years. Since its foundation in 1993 until late 2006, he was co-CEO of Petroplus, a pan-European midstream oil company with core activities in oil and refining and LNG storage.