Meyer mulls alliances with other yards

Managing partner Bernard Meyer told yard employees in Papenburg about “strategic changes” being discussed with trade unions and the local state of Lower Saxony and said yards in Germany and Europe faced great challenges. Yard insolvencies along with a now non-existent demand for standard vessels like container ships and tanker ships were creating an “extreme situation in competition”, he added.

“European shipyards only stand a chance if they have know-how, the highest possible productivity levels and flexibility in construction”, Mr Meyer warned. “In order to continue to combat this pressure in future, Meyer Werft cannot exclude closer co-operation and partnerships with other European shipyards”.

More specifically the yard said candidates for such co-operation would “need to have special technological know-how of and experience in building big cruise ships, ferries or offshore and research ships”.

Mr Meyer did not say which yards might be approached. Meyer Werft works council chairman Thomas Gelder, who attended the meeting along with other state and local officials, said however that although the plans were still vague he thought shipyards on the Baltic, in France or in Finland might be likely candidates.

Another union official, Meinhard Geiken, said “a stronger European orientation could be a good thing given the increasing competitive pressure from Southeast Asia”. But he stressed the unions would only support it if it did not mean loss of location or jobs within the Meyer Group.

Lower Saxony economics minister Olaf Lies said the state welcomed the Meyer comments. He suggested a pact grouping Meyer, the unions and the state. An important part of this would have to be security for the more than 3,000 jobs in the Meyer Group.