en.Wedoany.com Reported - German Rheinmetall Group and Swiss Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) issued a joint statement on May 5, 2026, confirming that both parties are in negotiations regarding the joint acquisition of the Mangalia Shipyard in Romania. The shipyard has been in insolvency proceedings since June 2024, and this acquisition would transform it into a shipbuilding base capable of handling both defense naval projects and commercial vessel orders.
The Mangalia Shipyard is one of Europe's large-scale shipyards, located on the Black Sea coast, covering a total area of approximately 1 million square meters and equipped with three dry docks. Established in 1976, the shipyard saw South Korea's Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering take over and hold a 51% stake in 1997. In 2018, the Dutch Damen Shipyards Group acquired Daewoo's shares, forming a 49% to 51% joint venture structure with the Romanian government. In 2023, following the introduction of a new company law in Romania, Damen lost management control of the shipyard and initiated divestment, filing for bankruptcy in May 2024 and formally entering insolvency proceedings in June. The bankruptcy court recently valued the shipyard's assets at 87 million euros.
Rheinmetall's acquisition interest builds upon its recent strategic positioning in the naval sector. The group has acquired the naval shipbuilding company from Germany's Lürssen Group, establishing a Naval Systems division and joining the ranks of global naval system suppliers. Shortly before this acquisition initiative, the Romanian government had already offered Rheinmetall a warship procurement contract worth nearly 1 billion euros (approximately 8 billion RMB), involving orders for four vessels. Rheinmetall stated in its announcement that the acquisition of the Mangalia Shipyard "is of strategic importance," aiming to rebuild the shipyard's operations while establishing Romania as a key hub for European shipbuilding.
MSC is a global provider of shipping and logistics services, with its shipping operations covering 300 trade routes and calling at 520 ports. The company expressed its intention to invest in the Mangalia Shipyard to the Romanian government in 2025, planning to start with ship repair operations and eventually build cruise ships, roll-on/roll-off vessels, and tugboats at the yard.
According to the transaction framework currently under negotiation, Rheinmetall and MSC intend to acquire a majority stake in the Mangalia Shipyard, with the Romanian government retaining a minority shareholding. Rheinmetall will be responsible for developing the defense shipbuilding business, while MSC will undertake the operations for the commercial shipbuilding sector.
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