Japanese shipbuilder Mitsui E&S Holdings is slashing its workforce and pushing through a restructuring. Local financial newswire Nikkei is reporting the yard is about to lay off around 10% of its staff, while the company is expected to stop building commercial ships at its Chiba shipyard. The yard has two drydocks and has been operating since 1962.
Mitsui E&S is Japan’s seventh largest shipbuilder. Once the restructuring is complete with the loss of 1,000 jobs, the company is expected to focus on machinery, including ship engines, as well as equipment for offshore development.
Japan was the world’s largest shipbuilding nation through to the start of this century. In the last 19 years, the sector has undergone huge contraction amid strong competition from China and South Korea.
