The saving of the Meyer shipyard appears to be imminent – both the federal authorities and the state government are becoming involved.
Despite having a packed order book, Meyer Werft in Papenburg might run out of funds within a fortnight. The company has been in talks with both federal and state authorities for months to secure a rescue deal. As per rumors, Federal Chancellor Scholz and Lower Saxony's Minister President Weil are set to announce a resolution tomorrow.
As per reports from "New Osnabruecker Zeitung" and NDR, the federal government and Lower Saxony are reportedly planning to save the company with hundreds of millions of euros. Tomorrow, Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Lower Saxony's Minister President Stephan Weil, and Lower Saxony's Economics Minister, Olaf Lies, are expected to hold a meeting at the shipyard, according to the works council chairman, Andreas Hensen.
In principle, all parties involved have agreed to save the ailing company, according to a spokesperson for the management. "However, there are still some technical details to be ironed out," they said. A solution must be found by September 15th, or else the shipyard will run out of funds. A potential involvement of the federal government and Lower Saxony in the shipyard, which could also increase the company's equity by 400 million euros, is under discussion. Moreover, the shipyard requires guarantees to obtain loans for ship construction. By 2027, the company, renowned for its cruise ships, will need almost 2.8 billion euros.
sources in Berlin's government circles suggest that a final decision hasn't been made yet, but there's a strong wish to save the shipyard. According to this, the federal government and Lower Saxony might each offer guarantees of around 900 million euros and temporarily take over 80 to 90% of the shipyard. But, such a plan would still need approval from bodies like the Budget Committee of the Bundestag and the EU Commission, they said.
The shipyard currently employs around 3,300 people. It's currently facing a severe crisis, mainly due to the sharp rise in energy and raw material prices recently, and the shipyard only receives a large portion of the purchase price upon delivery. Behind the scenes, negotiations regarding a state takeover of the company have been ongoing for weeks.
Stephan Weil, being Lower Saxony's Minister President, is expected to attend a meeting tomorrow with Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Lower Saxony's Economics Minister, Olaf Lies, to discuss the potential rescue deal for Meyer Werft. The federal government and Lower Saxony are reportedly planning to save the shipyard with hundreds of millions of euros.
