KIEL (dpa-AFX) - The naval company Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) still wants to become independent. "Our owner (Thyssenkrupp AG) recently confirmed this again," shipyard boss Oliver Burkhard told Deutsche Presse-Agentur. "An independent Marine Systems is a better way forward: for Thyssenkrupp, TKMS, for our customers, for Berlin and thus for Germany. This will create value and give us the chance for a strong German position in the expected and overdue European consolidation."

According to reports, several options seem possible: the entry of private equity investors, a borrower's transaction or a partial borrower's transaction, and/or the entry of the state. Burkhard emphasized that several options are open to TKMS and that preparations are currently underway. The issue is very complex, he said. "We didn't wait for others to come up with ideas. We see ourselves as the shapers of this industry, and we are the only ones who can shape it, because we have the appropriate size," said the CEO.

TKMS is now not only the largest shipyard in Germany, but also the only supplier in Europe to combine submarines, ships and the electronics division (Atlas) under one roof. It is important to have many skills and a certain size to be successful in the industry, he said. Being the only private-sector company with these characteristics is both a challenge and a design task, Burkhard said. "The turning point is here, which is a good thing. What's still missing are the right framework conditions to raise Germany to anywhere near the same level as the rest of Europe."

Burkhard reacts calmly to the latest German consolidation proposal of the Lürssen shipyard: "Our independence continues to have priority, but there is no doubt that a German solution would make sense." In recent years, there has been repeated talk of a national consolidation of the shipyard landscape, but without results. Industry insiders see it as too time-consuming and complicated to tackle this again now before the shipyards become independent. This is the right approach, but at the wrong time.

In all scenarios, however, it is essential to talk about a level playing field, Burkhard stressed. That could be done through the federal government's entry, he said. The French Naval Group, for example, is 71 percent owned by the state. The same applies to shipyards in Spain or Italy. "The federal government should also say what it intends to do with Naval Systems." It can do that by awarding contracts, he said, and it can do that by creating framework conditions. "It can also participate," the company CEO said. Burkhard praised the greatly improved cooperation with the German government since Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) took office. "With Pistorius, the turn of the times has also arrived at the top of the Federal Ministry of Defense."/moe/DP/he