Berthold Brinkmann News

It is a first in the German shipbuilding industry; the Aeolus, the first jack-up vessel for offshore wind farms designed and built in Germany, which was constructed at Sietas Shipyard for the prestigious Dutch marine engineering company Van Oord, has left the shipyard. Having passed through the Este barrage of Hamburg port, the jack-up vessel now travels along the river Elbe to Bremerhaven. Berthold Brinkmann, administrator at Sietas Shipyard said, "I am proud of what the employees at Sietas shipyard have accomplished with this ship.

After an intensive search of over two years, the insolvency administrator, Berthold Brinkmann, has found a strategic investor for the renowned Sietas Shipyard in Hamburg: Pella Shipyard from Otradnoye near St. Petersburg, Russia is taking over the company as of March 10, 2014. The purchase agreement with the Hamburg-based company Terraline GmbH, a member of Pella Shipyard Group, has already been concluded and officially certified by a solicitor, but is still awaiting approval by the creditors’ committee and banks. Following the takeover, Terraline will be renamed Pella Sietas GmbH.

The Danish shipping company DFDS and Volkswerft Stralsund held a ceremony for newbuild no. 500: On the fitting-out quay at the shipyard the special-purpose Ro/Ro vessel was named Ark Germania by Prof. Dr. Johanna Wanka, German Federal Minister of Education and Research, in the presence of 150 invited guests. In the weeks following the naming ceremony Volkswerft will continue the work on the “Roll on - Roll off Cargo” special-purpose vessel. It is scheduled to be delivered to DFDS, one of the biggest shipping companies in Northern Europe, in the fourth quarter of 2013.

While economies across Europe have essentially bumbled, stumbled and fumbled in the wake of the global economic meltdown, Germany has remained comparitively strong. Despite the general migration of shipbuilding to the Far East, we decided to check in on the current status of this proud nation with a strong maritime heritage. German shipbuilders concentrated in 2012 on building cruise ships, megayachts, freight ferries and additional high-value, specialty ships. In total, nine German shipyards across 12 shipbuilding sites supplied 21 sea going ships with a total tonnage of 473,700.

The hull is complete, the steelwork concluded, the building of the deckhouse has begun – in the dock of Sietas shipyard the first jack-up vessel for offshore wind farms developed and constructed in Germany is currently taking shape. Construction started in April 2012; the handover of the ship to the client, the Dutch marine engineering company Van Oord, is planned for July of this year. For further work on the final assembly, the jack-up vessel needs to be floating in the dock harbor of the Sietas shipyard.

On January 17, 2013, insolvency administrator Berthold Brinkmann gave a report about current developments at the P+S WERFTEN in Stralsund and Wolgast to the meeting of creditors and the creditor committee. Whereas work at the Peene shipyard in Wolgast was able to continue uninterrupted during the previous proceedings, production at the Volkswerft in Stralsund can only be resumed next Monday, 21 January 2013, following a nearly 11-week break. The agreement concerning two RoRo special vessels for Danish shipping company DFDS has now been signed, but it still subject to approval. “Because we believe approval will be granted, I've called on the operating company, Stralsunder Schiffbaugesellschaft, to take the appropriate steps to initiate production at the Volkswerft Stralsund.

The insolvency administrator expects Volkwerft Stralsund Yard to resume work soon on the two DFDS RoRo newbuildings. The DFDS order had been previously cancelled when P+S Werften went into administration. Dr. "The signed order for two RoRo special vessels for the Danish shipping company DFDS is now in our hands and is subject to various conditions. As we believe that these conditions will be fulfilled, the insolvency administrator of P+S Werften has instructed the operating company…

In a meeting of the creditor committee, and acting on the suggestion of the insolvency administrator, Berthold Brinkmann, P+S WERFTEN decided in favor of the Lürssen Group (Bremen) as the buyer of the Peene shipyard in Wolgast. This decision is subject to approval by the creditors holding liens on the property. The purchase agreement has already been concluded. As of May 1, 2013, the Lürssen Group will acquire the compact shipyard with its repair and new construction area. The purchase is also subject to approval by the Federal Cartel Office. The purchase price is less than 20 million euros. Berthold Brinkmann: “Lürssen offered the best purchase price.

P+S WERFTEN's insolvency administrator unfazed by Scandlines' decision to cancel construction contract for two ferries. "I am unperturbed, because I had included the cancellation by Scandlines in my calculations. In recent weeks we had made the two ships, the shipbuilding premises, staff and all construction plans available to Scandlines as well as to other shipbuilders and sub-contractors and in addition we conducted tests ourselves on the ships. Scandlines did not inform us to the scope agreed on about the results of the negotiations with the other shipbuilders. Nonetheless, the commercial offer made by Scandlines is also not acceptable. We presented the offer to the board of creditors this past Thursday. The board of creditors was also not willing to engage in this offer.

New agreement reached with Berthold Brinkmann, the insolvency administrator of P+S WERFTEN, German Shipbuilders. The new agreement means hat both coast guard ships ordered from the Peene shipyard can now be completed, and delivery is planned for February and April 2013. In addition, orders taken by the Peene shipyard to convert and maintain naval ships will go ahead as planned. For example, on 1 November the German navy tender “Main” has left the shipyard after a nine-month refitting period for its transfer voyage to Kiel. Furthermore, the administrator has taken on the construction agreement for components of the frigate 125. Construction for the German navy will take place as part of ARGE F125. Thanks to these orders, employment at the Peene shipyard has been secured up to May 2013.

Five concrete offers have been received for the companies of the Hamburg-based Sietas Group. This is the result of the second phase of the extensive search for investors by the receiver of the Sietas shipyard, Berthold Brinkmann. During the first phase, a number of potential investors were approached by HSH Corporate Finance, which had been commissioned with the task, and interested parties were asked to submit indicative offers. During the second phase, these offers were to be put into more concrete terms and confirmed after an in-depth due diligence assessment. Receiver Berthold Brinkmann commented as follows: “The five binding offers that we have meanwhile received for the Sietas Group companies include both an overall solution as well as the acquisition of individual companies.

In the shipbuilding hall of the Sietas shipyard in Hamburg, a start has now been made on the construction of a German premiere. Production has started on the first sections and blocks of the offshore wind power jack-up vessel for the prestigious Dutch marine engineering company Van Oord. In the presence of Peter de Ridder, COO of Van Oord, engineers from the specialist in complex offshore projects and the Sietas team, receiver Berthold Brinkmann and Rüdiger Fuchs, agent for the receiver, gave the go-ahead for the German premiere.

A number of prospective buyers have emerged for the companies of the Sietas Group. This is the result of the extensive investor search conducted by Berthold Brinkmann, receiver of the Sietas shipyard: "A number of people are interested in an overall solution, and there is special interest in Neuenfelder Maschinenfabrik (NMF) and Norderwerft. Today, the board of creditors of the Sietas shipyard asked me to enter into concrete negotiations with the prospective buyers." As reported, these prospective buyers have already submitted indicative offers, and they are to concretise and confirm these offers by mid-May. For this purpose, an in-depth due diligence audit is now starting, including the disclosure of all business documents of the Sietas shipyard, NMF and Norderwerft.

The management of J.J. Sietas KG Schiffswerft GmbH u. Co. and J.J. Sietas Verwaltungs GmbH have filed a petition for insolvency at the Municipal Court Hamburg on 17 November 2011, due to over-indebtedness. Work on ships under construction will continue, according to the company. The court has appointed a provisional creditors’ committee of inspection and, following a hearing of this provisional creditors’ committee of inspection, has appointed Lawyer Berthold Brinkmann of Hamburg…