ZAGREB, May 7, 2019 - The head of the Adriatic union, Boris Cerovac, on Monday told a press conference in Pula that workers at the Uljanik and 3. Maj docks whose accounts have been blocked and are not able to pay their bills can ask for a six-month moratorium on distress orders.

He informed that it is possible to delay the freezing of their accounts in line with an agreement reached between the Croatian association of payment agencies and the Blokirani civil society organisation representing citizens with blocked accounts and the union.

That will prevent a landslide of distress orders and blocked accounts, the president of the Blokirani NGO, Miriam Kervatin said, adding that if that were to occur not only would the lives of thousands of families be destroyed but "Pula and Istria would be smothered."

"The moratorium relates to all distress order that banks, teleoperators, credit card operators transferred to the payment agency," Kervatin explained.

Cerovac informed reporters of the situation at the Uljanik dock and that the IT sector was in receivership as of Thursday and all its workers were dismissed which will take effect after 30 days. "It is up to each worker to decide what they will do but as there is no bankruptcy fund, it would be wiser to register with the employment agency than to work those 30 days," he said.

He added that there is no one at the dock working in the payments section. In the personnel section, which is trying to resolve the issue of dismissal notices and other records there are no work safety measures, there is no IT and, as he said, "we are trying to come to an agreement with security guards so that at least there are some workers at the entrance to prevent the entry of unwanted persons or of material leaving the dock."

"The situation is alarming. If the Chinese are a serious partner, they will need time to find a solution yet workers have no more time. They are waiting for bankruptcy to be launched so they can at least achieve their minimum rights," Cerovac said, adding that he's afraid Uljanik is slowly being phased out.

More news about Uljanik can be found in the Business section.

ZAGREB, May 6, 2019 - A China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation delegation visited the Shipping Institute in Zagreb during last week's visit to Croatia and outlined proposals for it, Economy Minister Darko Horvat said on Monday.

"Talks are under way with one of the world's largest ship manufacturers and possible partners from China. They left Croatia on Wednesday and it's too soon to ask them for relevant information. We'll need a little more patience. Let's wait to see their point of view," Horvat told the press.

He added that aside from the Uljanik and 3. Maj shipyards, the Chinese had also visited the Shipping Institute "and they have certain proposals regarding that company too."

Asked to comment on the demand by the Blokirani association of citizens with frozen bank accounts that the state should help Uljanik's workers, Horvat said that "aid from the state budget is not the government's prospect" and that a strong strategic partner was needed to restructure Uljanik.

Horvat said that last year the state had paid for wages in Uljanik and 3. Maj, and that nearly 1 billion kuna had been spent on that and to service suppliers' claims.

"If we did that, then the government would have to respond identically about every ailing company, and we are aware that there's no such possibility right now," he added.

More news about relations between Croatia and China can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, May 3, 2019 - The Pazin Commercial Court on Friday adjourned a hearing at which a decision was to have been made on whether conditions have been met to launch bankruptcy proceedings in the case of Uljanik d.d., the umbrella company of the shipbuilding group, and scheduled a new hearing for May 17.

Judge Damir Rabar accepted a proposal by Management Board chair Emil Bulić to wait for a final decision by a potential Chinese partner, which is expected to be made known in about ten days.

Trustee Damir Majstorović said that both conditions for launching bankruptcy proceedings in the case of Uljanik d.d. had been met – inability to make payments and overindebtedness.

Majstorović said that the company's debt now totalled 60 million kuna.

The court decision to adjourn the bankruptcy hearing was welcomed also by trade unions. The decision gives Uljanik d.d. as well as the Uljanik and 3. Maj shipyards another chance for restructuring despite the fact that conditions for bankruptcy have been met.

The hearing was held after a delegation of the China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation visited both shipyards and after a bankruptcy hearing for one of them was adjourned until May 13 due to possible involvement of the Chinese investor in the two shipyards.

Uljanik d.d. is a 100% owner of other companies in the Uljanik group, the exception being the 3. Maj dock, where it holds 87% of the stock.

More shipbuilding news can be found in the Business section.

ZAGREB, May 1, 2019 - Economy Minister Darko Horvat said Wednesday during a break in a meeting with a Chinese delegation touring the Ulljanik and 3. Maj shipyards, that it was indicated during the talks that there was a possibility for the continuation of production in Pula and Rijeka, which does not have to be entirely related to shipbuilding.

Horvat who met with a China Shipyard Industry Corporationa (CSIC) at Zagreb's Airport, said that both locations were offered to the Chinese, not only for shipbuilding but also for other forms of production as well.

Several CSIC representatives arrived in Uljanik already on Monday to see the plants and make an unofficial assessment of the shipyards production capacities.

Uljanik's workers and unionists said they were not sceptical about the Chinese but about the Croatian government and its promises.

Union representatives are not included in the talks with the Chinese executives, at least for the time being.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Monday that the talks with CISC representatives about the Uljanik and 3. Maj docks were very substantive and open and that after it visits the two shipyards, the Chinese delegation is expected to consider the possibility of cooperation or partnership.

More news about the shipbuilding industry can be found in the Business section.

ZAGREB, April 30 (Hina) - A delegation of the China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC) talked with members of the management and supervisory boards of the Uljanik shipbuilding group for four hours on Tuesday, showing interest in the technology and special-purpose vessels, a member of Uljanik's supervisory board said after the meeting in the northern coastal town of Pula.

"I am glad to see that there are people who are interested in both shipyards, considering the situation we are in. The talks focused on the past, present and future of the shipyards in Pula and Rijeka, on shipbuilding and technology," Samir Hadžić told the press.

Expressing his satisfaction with the meeting, Hadžić said that the Chinese had primarily shown interest in the technology and special-purpose ships which Uljanik had built until now. He added that they did not discuss money or any kind of interim financing.

Hadžić noted that the Chinese asked for concrete answers, analysing each item, "and when they will make their final decision, only they know."

"We cannot force anyone to make a final decision in a short time. It's a process, but I hope it won't take much time, because the workers in Pula and Rijeka have no more time to wait," he said.

The high-level Chinese delegation was led by CSIC CEO Hu Wenming, and the meeting was also attended by the Croatian Assistant Minister of Economy, Zvonimir Novak.

After Pula, the Chinese delegation travelled to Rijeka to visit the 3. Maj shipyard which together with the Pula-based Uljanik forms the backbone of the Uljanik shipbuilding group.

More news about Uljanik can be found in the Business section.

ZAGREB, April 25, 2019 - A luxury polar discovery passenger vessel, Scenic Eclipse, the first of its kind in the world which the Pula-based Uljanik shipyard is building for Australian shipowner Glen Moroney, left the Uljanik shipyard on Thursday morning to be docked in the Rijeka-based Viktor Lenac shipyard.

According to sources in Uljanik, this is a regular procedure in the final stage of building a ship and docking is necessary to carry out checks and supervision of underwater works and to paint the vessel.

In normal circumstances, this would be good news because it would mean that the dock is a step away from delivering another ship. However, given Uljanik's current dire situation, it is feared that the vessel will not be returning to the Pula-based dock.

According to information from Uljanik, however, the ship is expected to return to Pula in two weeks.

The liner, named Scenic Eclipse, will be able to accommodate 409 people, including crew, and is built for sailing on all seas, including polar and tropical regions, for which it is specially equipped, Uljanik said. It is specially "strengthened" to navigate in harsh weather conditions and frozen seas, and satisfies the requirements of high environmental standards. It also has a mini submarine for underwater adventures as well as two helicopters for exploring inaccessible areas.

Uljanik signed the contract for the ship with a company in the Scenic Group in November 2015.

When completed, the vessel will be 165.70 meters long, 21.50 m wide and will be able to reach a speed of 17 knots. The number of passengers is limited to 237, with 172 crew members. The ship is intended for the highest class of passengers who will enjoy 114 luxury cabins, while there will be 138 no less luxurious cabins for the crew.

In the meantime, Finance Minister Zdravko Marić on Thursday said ahead of a cabinet meeting that the government was attempting to "save" the guarantee for a ship that the Uljanik shipyard is building for the Belgian Jan De Nul company.

The company has asked for a refund of advance payments that the government has partially covered with guarantees, namely in the amount of 124 million euro, while the total amount of advance payments is 158 million euro.

Responding to reporters regarding the impact the situation in Uljanik could have on the budget, Marić reiterated that guarantees that were paid out last year amount to a little more than 2.5 billion kuna and that "the wish, will and intention still exists to save guarantees for the dredger." That amount, he said, has already in some way been calculated in the public debt. He added that it will be necessary to invest certain funds so that most of the guarantee can be saved.

Asked whether the amount in question is 150 million kuna, Marić confirmed that that is about right.

As far as enforced guarantees for this year are concerned, Marić said that he expects that to be about 600 million kuna and that in the next few weeks it will be necessary to pay out 400 to 500 million kuna and, he added, "a good portion of that has been calculated in the budget."

More Uljanik news can be found in the Business section

ZAGREB, April 24, 2019 - Finance Minister Zdravko Marić told Croatian Radio that over the next few weeks the state will pay between 400 and 500 million kuna to cover the enforced guarantee for the Pula-based Uljanik shipyard, adding that the government would do everything so that the company that commissioned the construction of a dredger from Uljanik shipyard does not demand the repayment of all advance payments.

The Dredging and Maritime Management company, owned by the Jan De Nul group, is demanding the repayment of all advance payments for the construction of a dredger by Uljanik plus interest, with government collateral having been given for a part of the advance payments.

Asked whether there was hope for Uljanik and 3. Maj docks, given that the Belgian contractor was asking for its advance payment back and how much of a burden would the repayment be for the state budget, Marić said that the state was originally exposed towards the capital amount of Uljanik's loans in the amount of 4.3 billion kuna, and together with plus interest rates that amounts comes to 4.5 billion kuna.

"Most of it has been paid, some of it was paid in 2018 and the rest at the start of 2019, namely all together 3.1 billion kuna," Marić said adding that before the Belgian client's dredger there were other enforced guarantees so the state would need to pay between 400 and 500 million kuna over the next several weeks.

Asked to comment on Eurostat reports according which Croatia recorded a 0.2% government surplus in 2018, Marić said this was proof of the stability of public finances.

"The figures about Croatia released on Tuesday is another great recognition in international and domestic circles and the confirmation that public finances are stable, namely consolidated. This is the third year in a row that the public debt is going down and Croatia's consolidated gross debt was 74.6% of GDP," the minister said.

A hearing before the Commercial Court in Pazin which was expected to discuss preconditions for opening bankruptcy proceedings for the Uljanik shipyard was once again postponed on Wednesday and rescheduled for May 13.

Judge Ivan Dujić said the 60-day legal deadline for the postponed had expired, but that there were other legal grounds so he allowed another postponement. The judge said he would declare bankruptcy if Uljanik's accounts are not unblocked by May 13.

The proposal to launch bankruptcy proceedings at Uljanik was made in late January by the financial agency FINA, which said at the time that on January 21 the dock had overdue liabilities in the amount of 75.9 million kuna which it had not been able to pay for a period of more than 120 days. The Uljanik shipyard has 1,400 employees.

Uljanik said on Tuesday that the Dredging and Maritime Management company, owned by the Jan De Nul group, is demanding the repayment of all advance payments for the construction of a dredger by the Pula-based Uljanik shipyard plus interest, with government collateral having been given for a part of the advance payments.

Economy Minister Darko Horvat said on Tuesday that the negotiations with the company that commissioned the construction of a dredger from Uljanik were still under way and added that claims that the government would soon have to cover the enforced guarantee in the amount of half a billion kuna for that job were irresponsible and dangerous.

Horvat recalled that on 30 April and on 1 and 2 May, executives of the biggest Chinese shipbuilding company would tour the 3. Maj and Uljanik docks to see what can be done about their possible engagement or cooperation.

More news about Croatian shipbuilding industry can be found in the Business section.

ZAGREB, April 24, 2019 - Adriatic Union leader Boris Cerovac said on Tuesday that the hearing set for Wednesday at the Commercial Court in Pazin regarding the possible bankruptcy of the Uljanik Group had two options – either the judge will decide on bankruptcy or he will receive firm guarantees that a solution for Uljanik exists and will once again adjourn the hearing.

"There are two options on the cards – from the one that the judge will decide that conditions exist for bankruptcy, to the one that it has in the meantime received firm guarantees from someone that a solution exists and that the state will indeed pay out overdue wages and that the hearing will once again be adjourned," Cerovac told Hina.

He underscored that it was high time the agony of the Pula-based dock were resolved, claiming that the recent visit by China's premier and a trade delegation and their possible interest in taking over the Uljanik Group is not a sufficient reason to adjourn the hearing.

The unionist commented on a press release from the Uljanik Group's management on Monday that the shipyard "remains to be a protected area," following the return of Uljanik's security guards along with additional security guards from another company, claiming that he is not familiar with what sort of terms and conditions Uljanik's management has offered to security services to go back to work.

According to Cerovac, Uljanik's management had called on the strike committee to exempt security guards from the strike that was launched on March 21 so that the dock would not be left unguarded. The management board on Friday requested the strike committee to organise themselves and place their own guards at the dock, which they refused to do.

After not being paid for months, 150 employees in legal, personnel and IT services left their work stations as did the security guards that were guarding the entry to the dock leaving the shipyard's property totally unguarded.

"After we received a promise from Uljanik's management that the situation would be resolved soon, we decided to go back to work. Of a total of 18 security guards, 14 have returned to work," the head of the workers' committee for Uljanik's IT system, Zoran Milinkovic told Hina.

A hearing that was scheduled for this past Friday at the Commercial Court in Pazin regarding the possible bankruptcy at the Uljanik dock was shifted to or Wednesday, April 24.

More shipbuilding news can be found in the Business section.

ZAGREB, April 23, 2019 - The Dredging and Maritime Management company, owned by the Jan De Nul group, is demanding the repayment of all advance payments for the construction of a dredger by the Pula-based Uljanik shipyard plus interest, with government collateral having been given for a part of the advance payments, the dock said on Tuesday.

On April 19 the client said that it would seek the repayment of its advance payments for the vessel that was to have been built by the shipyard, Uljanik said in a statement it made public via the Zagreb Stock Exchange.

"After months of negotiations between the client, Croatian state institutions and Uljanik, which were aimed at having the vessel completed at Uljanik instead of repaying the advance payments or transferring the vessel for completion to a foreign shipyard of the client's choice, the client has made a final decision to seek the repayment of all advance payments made, plus interest," the statement said.

The interested parties will continue to work on finding a solution to reduce the harm the latest developments are expected to cause to the state and the shipyard, the statement said.

More Uljanik news can be found in the Business section.

ZAGREB, April 22, 2019 - Istrian Democratic Party (IDS) leader on Sunday reacted to the Easter homily delivered by the Archbishop of Zagreb, saying that Cardinal Josip Bozanić had used the Easter holiday to issue "biased political messages" and calling on him to "refrain from political cheering" and to intercede for the workers at the Uljanik and 3. Maj shipyards.

In a statement, IDS president Boris Miletić expressed regret that Cardinal Bozanić had used Easter to issue "biased political messages and a cynical criticism of Istria County and Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, which he said represent 'the most developed parts of the country'."

"Instead of engaging in political campaigning, Cardinal Bozanić could have used his speech today to draw attention to the inhumane, callous and un-Christian policy of stalling which the government has persistently used against the Uljanik and 3. Maj workers," the IDS leader said in the statement.

He appealed to the Church authorities "to refrain from political cheering and discriminating against the two regions which they do not like for reasons best known to them, and to actively intercede for the shipyard workers and help end their months-long suffering."

In his homily, Cardinal Bozanić referred to the shipyard workers in Pula and Rijeka who "have been coming to work for months without being paid," noting that this was happening in a part of the country that was described as most developed.

"How is this possible? Politicians, both local and those at the highest level, are certainly aware of this. Problems that have been long kept under the carpet in the interest of power-wielders need to be dealt with, but it is the little man that gets hurt in such games and calculations," Bozanić said, urging those in charge not to lose sight of the unprotected little man in addressing difficult issues.

More news about Croatian shipyards can be found in the Business section.