Key investor confirms Hansa Heavy Lift files for insolvency

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Reports are emerging that Hansa Heavy Lift has filed for insolvency. Efforts by The Loadstar to contact the beleaguered carrier for confirmation of the news proved futile, although one phone call elicited the response that things at the office were “exciting”. Heavy Lift PFI claims the rumours are true, citing a statement from Hansa’s key investor, Oaktree Capital Management. According to the report, structural challenges hobbled any and all attempts by the carrier – formed out of the collapse of Beluga Shipping in 2011 – to keep the business afloat. In the three years from 2015 to 2018, its fleet of 21 vessels was reduced to 11, and recent reports suggest one vessel had been arrested after the carrier failed to pay bunker fees.