Dredging firms awards more orders to Dutch shipyard IHC

SLIEDRECHT – Shipyard IHC Holland has booked new orders for a total of $890 million in the second quarter of 2007. The shipyard builds high-tech vessels for the flourishing Dutch and Belgian dredging industry. One of the orders is for a Malaysian dredging firm and is scheduled for delivery next year. The other orders will take longer, reaching completion in 2009 and 2011. To accommodate its increasing volume, IHC plans to acquire Europe’s largest covered shipyard in Krimpen aan den IJssel, currently owned by Hollandia. The shipbuilding industry in the Netherlands has been in decline for years but firms such as IHC which specialize in high-tech maritime applications generally have plenty of work.