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Abu Dhabi Mar aquired the skaramanga shipyardThe Hellenic Shipyard Skaramanga found its new owner in the face of the international corporation Abu Dhabi Mar, after the approval of the General Staff of National Defence and the Ministerial Committee responsible for the privatization issues. For many years the shipyard was ownership of the German company ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, which in recent years was having financial difficulties. The transfer of 74.1% of the shares must be ratified by the National Assembly, so that by the end of September the contract to come into force. 24.9% will remain owned by ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems.

His great pleasure from the transfer of the shipyard expressed the Minister of National Defence Elevterios Venizelos. After the announcement of the decision, he said that the contract with Abu Dhabi Mar has solved one issue that had been troubling the Greek government for a period of 10 years. The problem of which speaks the Minister Venizelos is related to the previous management of Skaramanga. It had a purchase for the construction of four Navy submarines Type 214, as well as for the repair of submarine Papanikolis. When placing the order the state paid to ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems two billion euros out of the total four billion euros agreed. Since the outbreak of the financial problems the company ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems becomes a debtor to the state, without submitting any one of four submarines Type 214. The "repaired" naval submarine "Papanikolis" appears to have a technical defect and when starting it dangerously begins to tilt to one side.

After the unfortunate cooperation with ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems the Ministry hopes that things will start going better with the new owners of Skaramanga. Venizelos said that currently an order has been placed for the construction of two submarines of type 214, as well as for the upgrading of two other old submarines Type 209. Abu Dhabi Mar has committed to meeting the orders, which will cost only an additional 175 thousand euros to the country except for the other two billion euros lost in ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems.

Elevterios Venizelos said that the new contract will ensure the proper relations and the transparency in the financial transactions so that in the future an effective and beneficial cooperation to be build. He assured that employees will retain their jobs and there will be no redundancies. One thousand two hundred shipyard workers will retain their jobs with the new employer - a condition included in the contract for transfer of ownership.

A little earlier before announcing the transfer of Skaramanga, in the beginning of this month it became clear that the European Commission has cleared under the EU Merger Regulation the alliance of Abu Dhabi Mar and ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems. After examining the proposal, the Commission issued a ruling that the transaction would not significantly impede effective competition in the European Economic Area and allowed the merger of the two companies. In the official statement is said that Abu Dhabi Mar has no presence in Germany, Greece and Sweden, where ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems already operates, so there is no risk of distortion of the market competition in these countries.