Kvaerner Sells Norwegian Shipyard

Kvaerner sold its Leirvik AS shipyard in Norway to a unit of Saevik Holding AS. Kvaerner, which plans to quit shipbuilding by the end of 1999 as part of a thorough restructuring, said the yard had 300 employees and annual turnover of about 500 million Norwegian crowns ($65.06 million). It did not give terms of the deal. "The economic result of the sale will be clear when the sale is completed, probably during November," officials said. The sale comprises Kvaerner's yard in Leirvik, west Norway, along with existing construction contracts for three combined icebreakers and supply vessels. Kvaerner, aiming to return to profit after huge losses, has sold two other shipbuilding yards so far -- Govan in Scotland and Kleven in Norway. It has about eight ship-building units left to sell, including ones in the U.S. and Finland.