German steelmaker ThyssenKrupp has announced that it is in talks with the Swedish specialty steel producer SSAB regarding the sale of Swedish shipyard activities ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems AB with facilities in Malmö, Karlskrona and Muskö, Sweden. The negotiations are at an early stage. Both parties agree that during the negotiation phase the integrity and the operating ability of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems AB have to be safeguarded. Any transaction would be subject to regulatory approval.
According to ThyssenKrupp, these talks are in line with the publicly stated Swedish government's preference for national naval shipbuilding programs. ThyssenKrupp offers a constructive solution, which would secure the industrial structures in Sweden and the high skilled jobs of the roughly 900 employees at ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems AB. At the same time, ThyssenKrupp aims at focusing its profitable naval shipbuilding activities in Kiel, Hamburg, and Emden, Germany. These activities have a high order backlog which secures workload and employment until 2020.