Aker Tulcea triples turnover

Tulcea Shipyard, owned by Norwegian group Aker, forecasts triple turnover for this year, up to 120 million euros. The company’s management is hiring more employees in order to be able to fulfill the unprecedented number of orders.

The yard recently received a newbuilding contract worth more than 150 million euros for five gas-fuelled ferries and, as a result, the value of orders placed during the last month with the Aker shipyards located in Braila and Tulcea has reached 280 million euros.

“This year, Aker Tulcea will register a record turnover amounting to a 300% increase compared with 2004, when turnover reached 40 million euros. Aker Braila will post a similar growth pace,” said Dumitru Ivanov, general manager.

“We will deliver a record number of ships in 2005, about 16. I believe this boom will continue in 2006, even 2007. Now, the most delicate issue is to find workforce. We are in talks with subcontractors to hire more people for the shipyard. We have 2,350 employees, while our subcontractors have another 700. We need another 400-500 employees,” says Ivanov.