Once one of the world’s largest shipyards, STX Offshore & Shipbuilding, is back from the abyss. With its orderbook close to expiring the Korean yard has been granted a path out of trouble. Local owners have come to the rescue handing STX its first new orders since 2015. Woolim Shipping and Sambong Corp have ordered in total up to four 11,200 dwt IMO-2 chemical tankers which will deliver from STX’s Jinhae yard in 2018 and 2019. No price has been revealed.
STX, formerly known as Daedong Shipbuilding, was bought by tycoon Kang Duk-soo at the start of the century. Kang embarked on a dramatic diversification of the group, getting in to most strands of the maritime business, while buying other yards in Asia and Europe. STX branched out from its traditional focus on product tankers and mid-sized boxships to build a wide variety of ship types before Kang’s grasp of the conglomerate was obliterated as it was revealed the group had huge hidden debts. STX’s yard in Jinhae has been under court receivership for the past couple of years while its overseas yards have been put up for sale.