SNCM to File for Bankruptcy

Debt-stricken French ferry operator Société Nationale Maritime Corse Méditerranée (SNCM) plans to file for bankruptcy, which might enable the company to avoid paying back the EU aid.

According to a court ruling from September, SNCM was ordered to pay USD USD 550 million of French state aid.

According to the ruling,  the European Commission had been wrong to approve the aid package as the circumstance under which the financial aid was given to the firm were not in accordance with that applicable to a private investor.

The announcement was made at a meeting on Monday, as reported by GlobalPost quoting employee representatives.

SNCM has suspended payments to creditors and will file for court protection today, Reuters reports citing a statement from the company.

Workers have been  urging the state to keep the company afloat and have been staging strikes since June.

As informed by Reuters, the company’s management wants to find a buyer for the firm.

Earlier this year, Baja Ferries, Mexican ferry company voiced intention to buy 66 percent stake in SNCM from Transdev.

The company said that the talks to close the deal were underway and that a decision might be in before the end of the year.

World Maritime News Staff