There has been much talk of late about the potential fate of the enfeebled Uljanik shipyard, as well as the 3 Maj shipyard, and what the future might hold for Croatian shipbuilding as a whole. It seems that any potential boost that a Chinese investment could have brought to this ailing industry has been lost.
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 21st of June, 2019, Minister Darko Horvat has admitted that there is no serious interest whatsoever from the Chinese in investing in Uljanik in Pula, or the 3 Maj shipyard in Rijeka, delivering a damaging blow to any remaining hopes that these shipyards could be brought back from the brink.
Horvat added that despite this bad news, the Croatian Government is currently engaged in trying to find a legal route for all of the ships currently at Uljanik and 3 Maj who are in a certain phase of completion are completed and delivered, signalling that there is every intention to honour obligations in spite of the dire situation the shipyards continue to find themselves in.
Economy Minister Darko Horvat was in Mokrice in Slovenia when he commented on the future of Croatian shipbuilding for the media, RTL writes.
Horvat said that the Chinese have no intention of entering as strategic partners in the Uljanik group, but they have expressed interest in the Brodarski Institute, which is located in Zagreb.
“The information I’ve received from the embassy in the People’s Republic of China supports the intentions that we’ve been talking about over the past month – that there is a serious intention of a Chinese partner to negotiate and have a joint appearance in new projects, but at this point, there’s no more serious intention from Chinese shipbuilders to purchase or enter into a strategic partnership with 3 Maj, more specifically with the Uljanik Group,” Horvat stated, emphasising the fact that the Croatian Government will continue to try to find a way to make sure the shipyards honour their obligations.
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