German shipyard Meyer Werft will halt production and suspend operations for six weeks starting on July 20th. There’s been a drop in orders linked to the uncertainty driven by Covid-19 pandemic. In a statement, the company has described its decision as “an extended company holiday”.
The builder of luxury cruise ships is struggling to stay afloat as it strives to save €1.2 billion over the next five years. Several cruise firms have been either canceling or delaying their orders for new liners. With German locations in Papenburg, Rostock, and Turku in Finland, the company was planning the delivery of three cruise liners before the pandemic started. It is now negotiating with its customers.
One of the cruise ships, called Iona and requested by British shipping company P&O, had its delivery date in May. The ship had already navigated on the Ems river but Covid-19 measures delayed work on the ship’s interior in the northern port city of Bremerhaven.
There is currently a plan to try to come to an agreement with staff representatives to move to part-time working hours, at least until the end of year. Roughly 3,000 workers are currently waiting for their vacation pay, a bill reaching €14 million, and will only be disbursed later in 2020.
The firm, which is located in the northwestern German town of Papenburg on the river Ems, which runs into the North Sea, hopes to receive some form of support from the federal government, as well as the Lower Saxony government.
In a statement, Meyer Werft’s CEO Bernard Meyer described the situation as “precarious.” The firm will be faced with difficulties during its 225th anniversary year.
