Michael D. Tusiani

Chairman at Poten & Partners

Speaker

Michael D. Tusiani began his career in shipping in 1970 as an economist for Naess Shipping Company. After it was acquired in 1973, he joined Poten & Partners, a small tanker brokerage firm established in 1938. He was made responsible for the company’s diversification efforts. In his first ten years there, Tusiani developed new departments: oil and gas commodity brokerage; LNG, LPG, chemical gases ship brokerage; offshore brokerage; financial services; and, oil and gas consulting. During this same period, he acquired sole ownership of the company. In 1983 Tusiani was named Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. In 2007 he sold the company to its employees under an Employee Stock Option Plan (ESOP) but continued as CEO until 2016. He is currently Chairman Emeritus and remains active as a consultant.

Tusiani serves on several Boards of Trustees/Advisors: New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Columbia University’s School of International & Public Affairs; Columbia University’s Center on Global Energy Policy; and Massachusetts Maritime Academy. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He has written numerous articles on energy and shipping matters and authored or co-authored six books, The Petroleum Shipping Industry: A Nontechnical Overview (PennWell, 1996); The Petroleum Shipping Industry: Operations and Practices (PennWell, 1996); LNG: A Nontechnical Guide (PennWell, 2007); LNG: Fuel For A Changing World: A Nontechnical Guide (PennWell, 2016); LNG: After the Pandemic (PennWell, 2023); and, From Black Gold to Frozen Gas: How Qatar Became an Energy Superpower (Columbia University Press, 2023). He received a B.A from Long Island University and an M.A. in economics from Fordham University.