German Shipbuilding: Ships being built again at the Two Shipyards
Work at the Peene shipyard is proceeding according to schedule – the Volkswerft shipyard will resume production on 21 January
On January 17, 2013, insolvency administrator Berthold Brinkmann gave a report about current developments at the P+S WERFTEN in Stralsund and Wolgast to the meeting of creditors and the creditor committee.
Whereas work at the Peene shipyard in Wolgast was able to continue uninterrupted during the previous proceedings, production at the Volkswerft in Stralsund can only be resumed next Monday, 21 January 2013, following a nearly 11-week break. The agreement concerning two RoRo special vessels for Danish shipping company DFDS has now been signed, but it still subject to approval. “Because we believe approval will be granted, I've called on the operating company, Stralsunder Schiffbaugesellschaft, to take the appropriate steps to initiate production at the Volkswerft Stralsund. Which means the shipyard will be up and running again. By placing another order, DFDS has quite clearly shown its confidence in the employees’ shipbuilding skills,” said Brinkmann.
By providing a guarantee in November 2012 for the continued construction of the two special ships, the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania also cleared the way for the Volkswerft to be able to build ships again. The two special “roll on-roll off cargo” transporters are 195 metres long and have a container capacity of 342 TEU and a cargo capacity of 3,000 track meters, which will accommodate the transport of as many as 185 trucks.
On 28 November 2012, the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania approved the debtor-in-possession financing for 43.5 million euros that the insolvency administrator had requested. This was possible within the framework of the liquidation plan, given the scope of the rescue aid granted.
Regarding the two ro-pax ferries moored at the shipyard’s dock in Stralsund, which originally had been ordered by Danish shipping company Scandlines, the administrator is now holding a number of talks because the number of parties interested in those two ships is growing.
Peene shipyard working according to schedule
At the Peene shipyard in Wolgast, which was sold to the Lürssen Group in December 2012 with an effective date of 1 May 2013, shipbuilding activities are proceeding as planned. Since Monday, 14 January, the newly constructed vessel No. 566 has been on a four-day trial run in the Baltic Sea. It is destined for the Swedish Coast Guard. The second vessel being built for the Swedish Coast Guard, new construction no. 567, is also on schedule. Deliveries are planned for February and March 2013, respectively.
