Malta Drydocks Gets New Leader

Malta last Wednesday appointed the head of Malta Shipbuilding as chairman of Malta Drydocks, pointing to closer cooperation between the two loss-making firms. The Department of Information said former banker John Cassar White, chairman of Malta Shipbuilding for almost two years, would also head Malta Drydocks from February. He will take over from Noel Zarb Adami. The new Malta Drydocks board will include former central bank governor Emanuel Ellul, former Labor minister Joe Micallef Stafrace and Anglu Fenech, former general secretary of the General Workers Union. Workers will elect one director to the board, instead of four previously. Economic Services Minister Josef Bonnici said last week the government had drawn up a business plan for Malta Drydocks and he hoped it would break even in five years' time, with turnover rising to $90.5 million from $36.5 million last year. State assistance to Malta Drydocks totaled $87 million in subsidies and debt servicing last year. Bonnici said the government was setting up a new management structure at Malta Drydocks, introducing new work practices for greater productivity and increasing marketing. It would work closely with loss-making Malta Shipbuilding through the pooling of resources and joint marketing. - (Reuters)