STX Offshore wins 1st, much-needed, order this year

Cash-strapped Korean shipbuilder STX Offshore & Shipbuilding Co has won its first order for this year.

The contract involving the construction of three 6,600 ton petrochemical tankers has been signed with a local shipper, Yonhap reported citing an announcement from the yard.

The small product tankers are scheduled for delivery in 2022.

The shipbuilder has been struggling with the ordering drought for quite some time, further aggravated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

As a result, the company resorted to various cost-saving measures, including early retirement plans and unpaid furloughs which have seen workers on strike since May.

The unionized workers went on a general strike on June 1 asking for furloughs to be ended. The shipbuilder went back to work at the end of July after the union and the company agreed to find a buyer for the shipbuilder to put the company back on track.

STX Offshore was considering to fully suspend its operations should market conditions fail to improve.

The company has seven orders in the backlog set for delivery in 2021.

 STX Offshore has been in the process of restructuring its business over seven years in cooperation with its creditor the Korea Development Bank.