ZAGREB, January 17, 2019 - The Pula-based Uljanik shipyard said on Thursday that the due diligence period had been extended until January 24 following additional interest shown by potential investors.

The data room is open from 8am to 6pm on weekdays and from 9am to 1pm on Saturday, January 19.

The company recalled that the deadline for submission of bids for a strategic partnership remained 8pm on January 25.

Economy Minister Darko Horvat said last week that intensive talks were under way with several partners and that it would be clear by January 25 whether they would eventually make a financial offer. He added that "two serious partners" were conducting due diligence.

Horvat said in parliament on Thursday morning that a third potential partner had shown interest on Wednesday and that he was certain that one more would express its interest next week.

More news on the Uljanik shipyard can be found in the Business section.

ZAGREB, January 16, 2019 - Economy Minister Darko Horvat during Question Time in Parliament on Wednesday dismissed criticism by MP Tulio Demetlika of the Istrian Democratic Party (IDS), who said that Horvat lied that he had a strategic partner for Croatian shipyards, stressing that he was speaking about potential partners with whom talks were underway.

"I have never said we had a strategic partner for Croatian shipyards, I said we have potential partners with whom we are talking," Horvat told Demetlika, who also asked Horvat why he asked local government units to break the law and pay salaries to Uljanik workers.

"Why don't you say it clearly? Do you or do you not have a strategic partner for Uljanik," Demetlika said, warning that uncertainty continues for the workers of Uljanik and 3. Maj shipyards, which lost more than 1,300 workers in less than a year.

The minister responded that if one were to calculate the amounts the government had injected into the docks in Rijeka and Pula in 2018, as assistance to workers, they would arrive at nearly one billion kuna. "You tell me, where is the local government in all of this? And take into account that the local government created the management in the two docks," the minister said.

Dissatisfied with the "unclear position" of the government regarding the survival of the shipbuilding industry, Demetlika insisted that the government is the only one that can do something.

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

ZAGREB, January 13, 2019 - Economy Minister Darko Horvat told reporters in Krapina on Sunday that the government was intensively talking to several partners about the Uljanik shipyard, that the public would receive information on January 18 and that whether or not a financial offer would follow would be known on January 25.

Asked about negotiations with potential investors in the Uljanik dock, the minister said that as of yet nobody had made an offer, adding however that "a data room" had been opened and that two partners were conducting due diligence.

"We expect another serious partner to join the negotiations in a week. Now we are resuming talks with everyone we see as a potential partner," Horvat said.

He declined to speak of the names of potential investors adding that the public would be informed of everything on 18 January.

Whether or not the talks will result in a concrete financial offer will be known later, Horvat said.

He also said that the government would help companies that are facing difficulties but not unconditionally. "Without a clear restructuring plant without clear prospects, I think it is crazy to waste tax payers money and the state budget on companies with no prospects, market or quality products.

More news on the Uljanik shipyard can be found in the Business section

ZAGREB, January 4, 2019 - Economy Minister Darko Horvat and Uljanik shipbuilding group chairman of the board Emil Bulić said on Friday two serious partners were interested in the group and that they were conducting due diligence, with Horvat hopeful that two more partners would express interest by January 25.

Horvat said after a three-hour meeting with the management of Uljanik d.d. that he was optimistic, although he realised an official receiver was appointed today to examine the situation in the 3. Maj dock and submit a report to a judge within 15 days, and that a similar situation awaited the Uljanik dock on January 26. Both docks are part of the Uljanik Group.

Horvat said Italy's Fincantieri and Croatia's DIV, acting together, and Australia's Scenic group, which is already building ships in Uljanik, were currently checking data on the state of affairs in the Uljanik and 3. Maj docks. He hopes that at least one or two concrete financial offers for a strategic partnership within the Uljanik Group will be made by January 25.

He said the group's management, the Economy Ministry and everyone involved were trying to find a solution to prevent 3. Maj from going into bankruptcy, adding that an attempt would be made to prevent Uljanik's bankruptcy too.

Asked by reporters if it was realistic to expect temporary financing until the restructuring programme began, Horvat said 150 million kuna, which would revive both docks, was not too much for Fincantieri-DIV and Scenic. "We'll see after they collect all the relevant information and express their interest through a serious financial offer."

Horvat said a bankruptcy procedure would not mean the closure of the shipyards. He added that he did not want to talk about bankruptcy yet because the two current partners and the two others he expected to access the data room by January 18 could pay 3. Maj's liabilities, which amount of 150 million kuna.

Asked if 3. Maj could be separated from the Uljanik Group, Horvat said both current partners were interested in the group. He said potential partners from Ukraine had informed the Economy Ministry they were interested in both docks, and that he expected partners from China to express interest too.

Asked if Scenic was interested as a potential strategic partner or just checking if it could build ships, Horvat said Scenic could become a part-owner and that its representatives would arrive in Croatia on Wednesday.

Responding to a question, he said that since DIV and Fincantieri were acting together, he was sure they were a financially capable strategic partner.

Asked if he had a plan in case there were no strategic partnership offers, he said that, in that event, "the prospects of both shipyards depends only on them."

Uljanik CEO Emil Bulić said after the meeting with Horvat that intensive talks with potential strategic partners were in progress. "In the past few weeks we have been dedicated to intensive talks with potential strategic partners. We have opened a data room, two very interested bidders have accessed the data room, and intensive activities are taking place on a daily basis so that we can make conclusions as soon as possible on binding offers, which are expected by January 25," Bulić said.

At the same time, negotiations are also under way with shipowners so that the construction of their vessels could resume as soon as possible and the stage of completion of the vessels could be increased.

Asked how he would avoid a bankruptcy and how much money he had at his disposal, Bulić said that obligations were huge, while the deadlines for data room use and bid submission were short. "Because our employees and creditors are financially exhausted, we expect shortly a reaction from both potential strategic partners and partners in restructuring, and we expect the state to be that, to jointly secure temporary financing until the adoption of the restructuring programme. After the completion of the procedure, we expect a binding offer and partnership in drafting the restructuring programme. It is realistic to expect the implementation of the programme to begin no sooner than two to three months from today. In the meantime, we are seeking a way to ensure temporary financing, which is key, until the launch of the restructuring programme," Bulić said.

He said that they had also contacted several other potential partners, but they had not confirmed their interest yet. Asked if he thought there was enough time, Bulić said: "There's very little time, but we are doing all we can. This is a period of uncertainty ... but the situation will be much clearer after January 25."

More news on the Uljanik shipyard can be found in our Business section.

ZAGREB, January 2, 2019 - Finance Minister Zdravko Marić said on Wednesday the enforced state guarantees for the Uljanik shipyard, in the amount of some 2.5 billion kuna, were paid on the last day of 2018 but that this did not endanger public finances in any way.

"That's only the principal. There is certain interest we also have to service, which leaves the part we expect we will have to pay this year," he told reporters when asked about obligations stemming from state guarantees for the ailing dock.

Marić said the amount of the interest to be paid would be known once the rates were calculated. "All the amounts are large," he said, adding that he was "not pleased with this situation at all" but that, as far as the government was concerned, this was in the past.

He said someone else should ask and answer why such guarantees were issued and how the money was spent. "It fell to us to service them," he said, adding that a state guarantee was a state institute which, when enforced, meant that "taxpayers are obliged to service that debt."

Marić said he was pleased "that we have reached such a level of public finance stability that, despite the enforced guarantees and the high amounts we paid and are paying, public finances haven't been endangered at all."

He said this would be evident when the relevant institutions published official public debt data. According to his ministry's projections, the public debt at the end of 2018 was down by an additional three percentage points, he added.

More news on the Uljanik shipyard can be found in our Business section.

ZAGREB, December 31, 2018 - A total of 510 packages with food and hygiene products worth 102,000 kuna in total were given to neediest employees of the Uljanik shipyard in Pula on December 18-21, the town government said on Monday.

The Pula Humanitarian Network helped other local ailing companies in the same way in the past and among the many donors were the workers of Uljanik.

The Network has asked donors for contacting its associations so as to ensure groceries for those in need in the period ahead.

Nearly every town and municipality in Istria County has shown solidarity with the ailing dock and its many workers by donating money.

Istria County and the Town of Pula have each donated 10,000 kuna for the "Uljanik for a Better Tomorrow" humanitarian drive, the town government said.

More news on the latest events in Uljanik and other Croatian shipyards can be found in our Business section.

ZAGREB, December 30, 2018 - Social Democratic Party (SDP) leader Davor Bernardić criticised on Saturday the government's treatment of workers in the shipbuilding industry.

"The announcement of bankruptcy proceedings in the 3. Maj shipyard is the worst possible New Year's message from the government," Bernardić said at a meeting with SDP members in Novska.

The Financial Agency (FINA) has filed a request with the Rijeka Commercial Court to launch bankruptcy proceedings in the Rijeka-based shipyard, which is part of the Uljanik shipbuilding group, after its account was blocked for 120 days due to unsettled claims amounting to slightly more than 72 million kuna.

Union representatives at 3. Maj have said that bankruptcy is not an acceptable option and that a sustainable solution should be sought for the shipyard instead. They also believe that 3. Maj is not responsible for its current situation and that its current situation is due to 3. Maj having lent more than 523 million kuna to the Pula-based Uljanik, the other shipyard in the Uljanik shipbuilding group.

Bernardić said the government had been avoiding dealing with the Uljanik situation for a year and that he believed this was so because it was in somebody's interest.

"Maybe someone has their eye on the land (shipyard premises) in Pula. It is clear to everyone that the bankruptcy of 3. Maj will pave the way for the bankruptcy and liquidation of Uljanik itself," Bernardić said.

More news on the situation in Uljanik can be found in our Business section.

ZAGREB, December 29, 2018 - Assistant Economy Minister Zvonimir Novak met with unionists on Friday to inform them about the situation at the Croatian shipyards, saying afterwards that several potential partners were checking the docks' data and that binding offers were expected after January 18.

After Uljanik's management decided that the Kermas Energija company is no longer a potential strategic partner, the search for a new one has begun, Novak said.

He said several reputable European and international shipyards had contacted them and were satisfied with the docks' technical equipment and workers' knowledge, but they wanted to see the books before possibly making a binding offer.

Novak said they were mainly interested in Rijeka's 3. Maj and some for the whole Uljanik Group, of which 3. Maj is part. "The data room will remain open until January 18 and in the week after that we expect that binding offers will arrive in Uljanik d.d."

Asked how bankruptcy proceedings in 3. Maj might affect the procedure, Novak said bankruptcy was neither simple nor cheap and that if it included reorganisation, it should be financed.

SSSH union federation president Mladen Novosel said management were the most responsible for the situation at Uljanik and 3. Maj. He said they should have reacted sooner, instead of ending up with no money for wages and material and having jobs cancelled.

The only chance is that one of the interested strategic partners "shows up" by January 25, he said, adding that he does not expect bankruptcy proceedings to be opened in the next three weeks and that they will not be unavoidable after January 25 either. He urged management to pay a minimum wage to the docks' workers until a strategic partner is found.

3. Maj unionist Juraj Šoljić hopes this dock will not go into bankruptcy and that a strategic partner will be found by January 25 that will continue with shipbuilding at Rijeka.

Đino Šverko, a unionist at Pula's Uljanik dock, said they wanted a strategic partner that would focus on shipbuilding and on saving shipbuilding in Pula and Rijeka. He called on the government to urgently adopt an emergency aid measure.

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

ZAGREB, December 28, 2018 - Unionists expect to receive a final answer to the question as to whether the government wants Croatian shipbuilding industry or not at Friday's meeting at the Economy Ministry on the future of the Uljanik and 3. Maj docks, the president of the SSSH union federation said ahead of the meeting.

"Today we expect both Minister Horvat and the government to finally decide if they want Croatia's shipbuilding or not," Mladen Novosel said.

Uljanik and 3. Maj are the backbone of Croatia's shipbuilding and industry, he said, adding that he did not expect the two docks to continue operating as they had until now, but that he was confident they could function under a new model.

"They can definitely function... on the strategic partnership model, the majority owner model, by building ships that are competitive both on the global and the European market."

Commenting on possible bankruptcy proceedings in 3. Maj, Novosel said the Commercial Court in Rijeka had three months to decide whether to launch them. "The next 30 days are the final deadline for the government to do its best and say that it has found a strategic partner or that there's no strategic partner."

Another unionist, Sinisa Košić, too said the court would decide whether 3. Maj would undergo bankruptcy proceedings. He hopes it will not happen, but if it does, he is confident shipbuilding can resume on the dock's premises.

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

ZAGREB, December 27, 2018 - Economy Minister Darko Horvat said on Thursday the Financial Agency (FINA) would request the launching of bankruptcy proceedings in Rijeka's 3. Maj shipyard, and that his ministry had sent invitation letters to five addresses in the search for a strategic investor in the Uljanik shipbuilding group, of which 3. Maj is part.

Responding to questions from the press, Horvat said there were no conditions for launching bankruptcy proceedings in the group but that they did exist for 3. Maj and that, according to his information, "FINA will launch bankruptcy proceedings."

He said a virtual data room for the group was opened today. "We will give to all those we have sent letters the opportunity until January 16 to see and collect all the necessary relevant information, and I expect that by the end of January we will have responsible and financially very concrete bids for both Uljanik and 3. Maj."

Asked when bankruptcy could be launched in 3. Maj, Horvat said "perhaps even today."

Commenting on a restructuring plan for the Uljanik Group and 3. Maj's fate, he said it was "necessary to choose a new strategic partner," after businessman Danko Končar is no longer an option, "a partner that will be able to financially back the restructuring."

Horvat said no one had registered to see the data room in Pula yet but that the Economy Ministry had sent invitation letters to five addresses and that it expected to receive replies in the days ahead. The letters were sent to Fincantieri, DIV, Damen, UHC and Ukraine's Smart Holding, he said, adding that replies had been received from Chinese shipyards.

Last week Uljanik broke a strategic partnership with Končar's Kermas Energija and decided to start looking for new partners willing to in invest in the group's restructuring. The group invited interested investors to express interest in strategic partnership and recapitalisation.

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