"Turkey's Atlantis Tankers has finally acquired a tanker initially ordered in 2006. The 5,650-dwt Atlantis Augusta, its twelfth vessel, was delivered last month after a dispute with yard owner Yildirim Group and ongoing lawsuits that led to its completion at a different shipyard.
Atlantis, under the control of Lorenz Weinstabl, informed TradeWinds that its newbuilding and management arm Armona had signed a contract with Turkey's Marmara Shipyard in 2006 for the construction of three 5,650-dwt tankers. However, as construction was about to commence, the financially struggling yard struck a deal in April 2007 with Yildirim Group company Yilmar to sell 100% of the yard, according to Atlantis.
Subsequently, the shipyard proposed constructing the first Atlantis vessel for triple the amount of the original contract, Atlantis claimed. Despite attempts to reach an agreement, no deal was struck, and by the end of 2007, Armona filed a lawsuit against Marmara seeking compensation.
"The lawsuit has been ongoing for ten years, with an expected award in the first instance before the summer break," Atlantis stated.
In January 2015, Armona decided to resume construction of the first two newbuildings and reopened negotiations with Marmara. Yildirim retaliated with three lawsuits against Armona for compensation, storage costs, and the final progress payment, Atlantis reported.
Armona secured a preliminary injunction from a district court in October 2015, allowing it to retrieve a total of 6,000 tons of steel from Marmara. The blocks for the first tanker were loaded onto two barges and towed to Tuzla, while the remainder was transported on 64 low-bed trucks.
Subsequently, the vessels were constructed at Selay Shipyard and Selah Shipyard. The second vessel, Atlantis Alicante, is expected in June.
Yildirim Group CEO Robert Yildirim told TradeWinds that when the orders were placed, Marmara was facing financial difficulties and accepted the contracts at very low prices, along with contracts for Yilmar and compatriot owner Duzgit.
However, market conditions changed dramatically, with rising labor costs. Yildirim explained that it was the labor contract price that needed adjustment. While Yilmar and Duzgit accepted the labor increase in new contracts as part of the change of control of the yard, Atlantis insisted on sticking to the original deal.
Yildirim stated, "I told Lorenz, we can't build your ships at the current contract price. The contracts were underwater. Am I stupid? This is a big loss. Yildirim Group will never work for a loss. We want to make money."
He added that Atlantis initially refused to relocate its equipment from his yard. "We later offered to match the cost at the Tuzla yards, but he wanted to go to court. He could have been operating these ships for years."
