Challenging 2012 for Dutch shipbuilders

While output suffered, HBA says Dutch shipbuilders held their own in 2012. Deliveries from Dutch shipyards amounted to 95 seagoing vessels – a total of almost 335,046 CGT with a value in excess of €1bn. Around 58% of the ships produced in the Netherlands in 2012 were destined for export, while the amount of new orders placed dropped by 35% in value terms.

But by the end of 2012 the orderbook looked better with 129 container vessels orders received, totalling around 593,893 CGT with a value of more than €2bn.

Hans Veraart, commercial director, Barkmeijer Shipyards, told The Motorship: “The Dutch shipbuilding sector is doing quite well. At the moment we are building three Pilot Station Vessels for Loodswezen. The first vessel was launched in 2012, the second and third are planned for this year and 2014.”

The delivery of inland ships was also looking up, with some 90 inland ships delivered in 2012. These included a large number of non cargo carrying vessels, ranging from dredgers to patrol ships and river cruisers.

Employment in the sector was strong in 2012, while turnover grew by over 13% compared to 2011, in line with increased traffic in the main Dutch ports and reflecting orders for large scale refits and conversions.

Looking forward, HBA says Dutch builders of river cargo vessels are facing an inland shipping market with significant overcapacity in the short term.

It adds that infrastructural and maritime policy will increasingly favour inland shipping as a more environmentally friendly way of transporting goods within the country and throughout Europe, leading to a healthy long term business outlook.