SEPI Sociedad Estatal de Participaciones Industriales

• Today come into force the contracts and construction will start at the end of this year
• The four ships will entail 3 Million hours of work for NAVANTIA, the ancillary industry and the Cadiz and Ferrol shipyards

NAVANTIA and Ondimar Transportes Marítimos LDA (the shipping company from Grupo Ibaizabal) ratified today the contracts signed at the end of June and the financial structure for the construction of the 4 Suezmax-class oil tankers, which can be expanded to a further two units. The 4 ships will entail 3 Million hours of work for NAVANTIA and for the ancillary industry at the shipyards in the Bay of Cadiz and the Ferrol Inlet.

The ships will be built in Spain at the prices in force in the international market for this class of vessels, thus providing stability to NANVATIA’s workload, promoting the creation of jobs and the domestic industry. The contracts mean the Company’s return to the construction of oil tankers after almost two decades without building this class of ships, while generating a financial profit. 

The ships will be built in Spain at the prices in force in the international market for this class of vessels, thus providing stability to NANVATIA’s workload, promoting the creation of jobs and the domestic industry. The contracts mean the Company’s return to the construction of oil tankers after almost two decades without building this class of ships, while generating a financial profit.

NAVANTIA’s Chairman, Mr. José Manuel Revuelta, and the Chairman of Grupo Ibaizabal, Mr. Alejandro Aznar, attended today the ratification of these contracts, which were signed on June 30th, and which are now ratified after being authorized by the respective Boards of Directors.

Start of the construction

The ships will start their construction during the fourth quarter of this year, and the first will be delivered at the end of 2017. On March 9th took place the signing of the Letter of Intent expressing that both parties were willing to reach a full agreement for the construction of these ships, both regarding their technical requirements and the price. Later, in May, an Agreement in Principle was reached for the signing of the contract in June, as happened on 30th of that month.

The construction of each ship will entail around 725,000 hours of work, that is to say that for the first 4 units the volume of the workload will be of about 3 Million hours of work for the shipyards which NAVANTIA has at the Bay of Cadiz and on the Ferrol Inlet and for the ancillary industry companies.

Winning this kind of contracts for ship construction in the global market is defined by the price and the term, taking for granted that the quality is that demanded by the norms and by the classification societies. NAVANTIA promotes this business model in order to be able to compete in the global market offering a competitive price and an adequate term for the customer’s requirements.

For winning this contract, NAVANTIA has reached an agreement with DSEC, Daewoo’s engineering division, which provides its experience in the construction of this class of ships, a highly consolidated design, thus preventing the risks attached to the start of a new project.

A new scenario for NAVANTIA

NAVANTIA celebrates this contract which allows it to achieve enough workload in all its factories, and thus to continue promoting the needed transformation of the Company for being more competitive and sustainable. Furthermore, it will continue carrying out a relentless commercial activity aimed at winning new contracts. 

Thus, in the next few years, the shipyards at the Ferrol Inlet will conclude the construction of the Accommodation Ship for Pemex, the offshore multi-role vessel (BAM) for the Spanish Navy, and will build the blocks for each of the bows for the 4 Suezmax-class oil tankers, as well as other blocks and modules for the equipment for the engine chambers. On the other hand, at the FENE factory work is underway on the offshore wind power, with the contracts already in force for the jackets for Iberdrola’s Wikinger offshore wind farm and for Statoil’s platforms. But above all, Ferrol is a military shipyard with outstanding opportunities in international bids in which NAVANTIA takes part with good opportunities of success.

The shipyards at the Bay of Cadiz will build most of these Suezmax-class oil tankers, the BAM which is under construction at San Fernando, and the electricity substation for the Wikinger offshore wind farm which Iberdrola will set up in Germany.

The shipyard at the Cartagena Dock, after receiving the go ahead of the Spanish Navy to the redesign of the S81 submarine, has resumed the work on the workshops at which the S-81 Plus submarine is being built and is specializing as a cutting-edge shipyard in submarine construction.

Furthermore, NAVANTIA maintains its commitment with the Repairs Field, with its strategic markets, such as LNGs, cruise ships and yachts, and above all with the contract for the maintenance of the US Navy destroyers at the Rota naval base. It also gives the highest importance to NAVANTIA Sistemas for its technological capabilities, and to the Engines and Turbines Unit.

With regard to Engineering, NAVANTIA will focus its conceptual engineering and design assets on military ships and on high-added-value innovative merchant ships, such as the LNGs, aimed both at the domestic and the international markets. Also, other engineering priority for NAVANTIA, depending on the agreements reached with shipyards from different countries will be providing technical aid and the Transfer of Technology (ToT), an activity with a growing demand and future. Diversification through offshore wind power is other of the keys for the company.

Main features of the Suezmax-class

This class of ships are called Suezmax because their size allows them to sail through the Suez Canal. Their most significant measures are as follows:

• Weight: 156,000 Tons
• Length: 274 meters
• Beam: 48 meters
• Steel used: 20,144 Tons

About NAVANTIA

NAVANTIA constitutes a world reference in the design, construction and integration of warships with a high-technological content, including new generation submarines, as well as ship repairs and upgrades. Besides, its activity lines include the design and manufacturing of combat and command and control systems, integrated platform management systems, firing control systems, propulsion engines and the Life Cycle Support for all its products. Although its main activity is in the naval field, NAVANTIA also designs and manufactures systems for the Army and the Air Force. 

NAVANTIA belongs to Grupo SEPI, a corporate holding which includes a total of 16 state-owned companies in which it has direct, majority shareholding participations, with a final workforce of circa 73,000 professionals in 2014; the Spanish state-owned television and radio corporation, Corporación Radiotelevisión Española, which is attached to SEPI, and one public foundation. Equally, SEPI has direct minority shareholdings in a further ten companies, and indirect shareholdings in more than one hundred companies.