Hanjin’s Philippine shipyard files for court receivership

South Korean shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Philippines (HHIC-Phil) filed for corporate rehabilitation in a Philippine court on Tuesday, January 8.

The move comes as the company seeks protection from both Philippine banks and South Korean lenders, to whom it owes approximately US$1.3 billion in total outstanding debt.

Both HHIC-Phil’s lawyers and officials of the Olongapo Regional Trial Court, where the appeal was filed, have declined to provide any other details.

Problems with liquidity have forced HHIC-Phil to lay off more than 7,000 workers in December while another 3,000 are to be laid off early this year, according to an official of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA).

HHIC-Phil has been incurring debt since 2016 when parent company Hanjin Heavy began selling its noncore assets as part of a US$1.86 billion restructuring scheme.

The company’s Subic shipyard still has six pending newbuilding projects which may have to be cancelled unless a rehabilitation plan is implemented.