Thyssenkrupp to hold shareholder meeting ahead of warship division spin-off

Thyssenkrupp is planning an extraordinary general meeting to conclude a spin-off of a minority stake in its warship division this calendar year, the group's Chief Executive Miguel Lopez said in a podcast released on Tuesday.

Speaking on a podcast produced by Germany's WAZ newspaper, Lopez said order books were full ahead of the planned spin-off of Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems, which makes frigates and submarines.

The spin-off was also "strategically relevant for ... Germany with a view to possible cooperation in the European defence sector," Lopez said.

Germany's likely next Chancellor Friedrich Merz, whose "conservatives" came in first in parliamentary elections on Sunday, has said Europe must quickly establish an independent defence capability.

Thyssenkrupp's portfolio includes high-performance frigates and compact corvettes as well as special open-sea patrol ships and support vessels.

(Writing by Friederike Heine Editing by Tomasz Janowski)