Szczecin collapse leaves contractors high and dry

Jacek Szlachcikowski, the co-owner of Szczecin shipbuilding subcontractor Partner, said he feels cheated by the management of the Szczecin Shipyard, which filed for bankruptcy last week. For the past two years, his company has provided welding, polishing and installation services for the troubled shipbuilder which owes Partner zł. 500,000 - a sum that Szlachcikowski believes he will never see. "The most important point in the whole situation is that in November 2001, (Szczecin Shipyard's) management assured us that the shipyard would pay off its debts," Szlachcikowski said. "This was the breaking point because we believed them - and this is my biggest regret in light of current events." Szlachcikowski is one of about 1,500 company owners who have not received payments for goods and services following the shipyard's collapse. The non-payment has forced Partner to cut its workforce to 50 from 80. Szczecin Shipyard filed for bankruptcy after a consortium of seven banks failed to meet conditions for a government bailout earlier this month, which required a write-off of 80% of the shipyard's $293 million in bank loans. The Industrial Development Agency (ARP) will meet with the banks on Tuesday to discuss a deal aimed at completing eight ships currently under construction. The deal could help save the jobs of half of the shipyard's 4,500 workers and recoup some of the debts owed to the bank consortium, said Marek Molewicz, the shipyard's chief public relations specialist. "If these ships are completed and sold, there is hope that we will be able to take on further orders," he said.

Protesting losses Szczecin Shipyard owes its suppliers zł. 400 million ($100 million), including zł. 100 million ($25 million) to Poznań-based ship-engine maker H. Cegielski and zł. 300 million ($75 million) to small- and medium-sized firms that have contracts with the yard, Molewicz said. The shipyard's smaller creditors have protested and started to organize action groups, such as the Social Committee of Szczecin Shipyard Creditors (SKWSS). They say they stand little chance of recovering any of their dues because, according to bankruptcy law, the tax authorities and workers come first. Meanwhile, debts to banks are secured against Szczecin Shipyard's ships. "We could end up being the ones who pay for the rescue package," said Danuta Plombon, head of the SKWSS. SKWWS is demanding the refund of sales tax paid by subcontractors on contracts for the shipyard, and will meet with representatives of the Szczecin tax office this week to hammer out a deal. "The creditors of the Szczecin Shipyard have been treated as taboo by the media," Plombon said. "They have been harmed and have incurred losses … The media have focused on the problems of shipyard workers and their families, but nobody has looked at the problems of our families." Partner's Szlachcikowski is concerned that the shipyard's situation will devastate the local economy, where it remains the largest source of jobs. "There is nothing in Szczecin apart from the shipyard - what other companies are there here?" Szlachcikowski said. "There are no other companies in our line of business."