Fincantieri signs deals to boost Iranian yards

In the presence of the Italian prime minister Matteo Renzi and the president of Iran Hassan Rouhani – on an official visit in Italy – shipbuilder Fincantieri yesterday signed a number of framework agreements with Iranian companies.

“These preliminary understandings are prior to the accomplishment of several contracts worth some hundred million euros and to the potential development of joint activities,” Fincantieri said in a release.

Among the key deals, Fincantieri has reached a cooperation and development agreement with Azim Gostaresh Hormoz Shipbuilding Industry Co (AGH), a modern and new shipyard, strategically located in the Persian Gulf within a special economic zone. AGH is controlled by the larger Iran Shipbuilding and Offshore Industries Complex Company (ISOICO), which is under the administration of the Industrial Development & Renovation Organization of Iran (IDRO. The agreement provides for cooperation between the two companies for the construction of new merchant vessels and offshore units both in the field of ship repairs and conversions and in refitting activities of already operating units.

Giuseppe Bono, ceo of Fincantieri, stated: “We have once more demonstrated the ability to attract the industrial interest of one of the countries with the highest development potential in the world. The agreement which we have achieved thanks to the company’s presence in all the areas of the shipbuilding and advanced manufacturing industry, will surely represent an added value of outmost importance to increase the worldwide dimension and the export share of our group”.