Havyard Solstrand bankrupt

Havyard Solstrand shipyard in Norway has filed for bankruptcy after the banks removed their funding. The yard, which is owned 80% by the Havyard Group is fighting for its long term future because contract prices for the offshore vessels it is currently building are lower than the production costs and the banks have pulled out their financial support.

Rising prices of steel and ship equipment has left the yard out of pocket and it has not been able to secure more offshore vessel newbuilding work to keep it going into 2010. Meetings are ongoing between the banks that now operate the Havyard Solstrand facilities and the Havyard Group, which is expected to rescue the yard.

So far the yard, which is in Tomrefjord, near Molde in mid-Norway, has remained busy through this financial upheaval, building three offshore support vessels for Norwegian and Faroes shipping companies. “We have filed for bankruptcy because of we are not able to find a financial solution and the banks took back their finance, but we continue to build the ships,” said Havyard Solstrand managing director Arne Tennoey. The yard is building an offshore support vessel for Trico Marine, which is due to be delivered in December this year, one for Siem Offshore that should be delivered in March 2009 and there is a platform supply vessel for a Faroes supply service for delivery next September.

All of the work goes on as usual and the offshore vessels will be finished and completed but there are contracts for four fishing vessels and the yard will not start building any of them until a financial solution has been found and the yard is under new ownership. Two of the four fishing vessels are for Icelandic owners, and the other two are for Norwegian owners, including one for Olympic Shipping.