Damen opens new shipyard in Vietnam

   Damen Shipyard Group has opened a new shipbuilding yard facility along Vietnam’s Cam River.
   The yard is built on a 43-hectare (430,000 square meters) site with direct access to the open sea. It will be operated as a joint venture with the firm Song Cam.
   Damen, based in the Netherlands, has been active in the Vietnam market for more than 12 years and works with five shipyards throughout the country on a contract basis.
   “We have successfully built 226 vessels in Vietnam with our partner yards. Vietnam has a lot of shipbuilding knowledge; the people are very hard-working,” said Pim Schuurman, managing director of Damen Holding Vietnam, in a statement.
   About 300 people work at the new yard, but when the second phase of the facility is complete, the number of employees could rise to 800, the company said.
   Damen’s new shipyard will operate under the brand Damen Song Cam. Recently, the original Song Cam shipyard merged with Ben Kien, an organization owned by Shipbuilding Industry Corporation, formerly known as Vinashin. By the end of 2014, Damen will have formed a joint venture with the newly merged company Song Cam/Ben Kien, as well as with Ha Long.