Bremer Landesbank News

German state-controlled lender NordLB will inject money into its loss-making Bremer Landesbank (BLB) unit, which is suffering from a weak shipping market that is chipping away at its capital. BLB said it booked a writedown of 1.6 billion euros ($1.71 billion) on its shipping book in 2016. NordLB said that it would, however, not need to tap its own public-sector shareholders to stump up the money for the cash injection. NordLB has said in the past that it expects a 2016 loss of more than 1 billion euros. BLB, which has around 30 billion euros in assets, was taken over completely by NordLB in January. (Reporting by Arno Schuetze)

Idwal Marine has launched the shipping industry’s first cloud-based online platform to provide instant quotations and deliver reporting for complete vessel condition, pre-purchase and pre-charter inspection services. The online platform www.inspectmyship.com provides 24-hour access to a global network of ISO-certified ship inspectors worldwide and comprehensive vessel condition reports to help banks, shipowners, brokers, charterers and financial organisations assess the condition of shipping assets. The UK-based inspection services provider, Idwal Marine (part of the Graig Group), believes that the current low charter rate environment and downward pressure on asset values is driving shipowners…

The European Central Bank has urged German state-owned lender Bremer Landesbank to shore up its capital resources against non-performing loans in shipping, three sources familiar with the matter said. Bremer (BLB) needs another 700 million euros ($800 million) in equity, weekly magazine Focus reported earlier on Saturday, citing talks between the city-state's finance chief and parliamentary leaders. "There are close discussions with the ECB," one of the sources told Reuters. Strengthening BLB's capital is a "matter of intense talks," a second source said. Germany was one of the world's main centres of global ship finance before the 2008 financial crisis, and the five German banks with the closest links to the shipping industry still have around 80 billion euros on loan to the sector.

The Marguerite Fund has acquired a 22.5% stake in the German greenfield Butendiek offshore wind farm. The Butendiek project is a 288 MW greenfield offshore wind farm located in the North-Sea in the German exclusive economic zone, 32 km west of the German Island of Sylt, and consisting of 80 Siemens 3.6 MW wind turbines. The start of the offshore construction works is scheduled for Spring 2014 and installation of the wind turbines is planned to take place between Autumn 2014 and Summer 2015. When commissioned the wind farm will produce 1,290 GWh p.a., enough to supply the equivalent of some 370,000 households with electricity each year. The cost of the project is estimated to be €1.3bn.