Wärtsilä to adjust its Ship Power business to reflect the weak market situation
Wärtsilä Corporation, Company announcement, 17 July 2015 at 8.25 am EET
Wärtsilä to adjust its Ship Power business to reflect the weak market situation
Wärtsilä's Ship Power business, today renamed Marine Solutions, plans to realign its organisation, operations and resources in response to the sluggish global marine market situation. These plans will affect personnel in all functions of Wärtsilä Marine Solutions' global operations. The realignment will mean the reduction of approximately 600 jobs, of which some 160 will be in Finland. A portion of the reductions will be realised through retirements.
In taking these measures, Wärtsilä seeks annual savings in the region of EUR 40 million. The effect of the savings will materialise gradually beginning from the third quarter of 2015, and will take full effect by the end of 2016. The non-recurring costs related to the restructuring measures will be approximately EUR 25-30 million.
"The marine industry has been slow in recovering from the global economic crisis and new shipbuilding contracting is weak. At the same time, the offshore oil & gas industry has been adversely affected by lower oil prices. In addition, there are risks related to vessel owners negotiating extensions to existing delivery contracts. The combined impact of these developments has created a challenging market situation for the entire marine sector.
These unfortunate capacity adjustments have to be made in this current environment of low demand in order for us to maintain our competitive position in the global market. Despite streamlining the organisation, our commitment to our customers remains absolutely solid," says Jaakko Eskola, President, Marine Solutions, Senior Executive Vice President, Wärtsilä Corporation.
These realignment plans are aimed at adjusting Wärtsilä's Marine Solutions business to be able to efficiently respond to the needs of its various customer segments. The effect of these adjustments will be specified when the consultation processes are initiated in the affected countries according to local practices and legislation.
Currently, Wärtsilä Marine Solutions employs 7,217 people globally.
Media contacts:
Jaakko Eskola
Senior Executive Vice President & President, Ship Power
Wärtsilä Corporation
Tel. +358 10 709 5623
jaakko.eskola@wartsila.com
Atte Palomäki
Executive Vice President, Communications & Branding
Wärtsilä Corporation
Tel. +358 10 709 5599
atte.palomaki@wartsila.com
For investor information, please contact:
Natalia Valtasaari
Director, Investor Relations
Wärtsilä Corporation
Tel: +358 40 187 7809
natalia.valtasaari@wartsila.com
Wärtsilä in brief:
Wärtsilä is a global leader in complete lifecycle power solutions for the marine and energy markets. By emphasising technological innovation and total efficiency, Wärtsilä maximizes the environmental and economic performance of the vessels and power plants of its customers.
In 2014, Wärtsilä's net sales totalled EUR 4.8 billion with approximately 17,700 employees. The company has operations in more than 200 locations in nearly 70 countries around the world. Wärtsilä is listed on Nasdaq Helsinki.