Hatecke on market with Commerzbank advising

Hatecke, a German manufacturer of lifeboats, is being advised by Commerzbank on an ongoing sale, five sources familiar with the situation said.

The process is understood to have started earlier in the year and attracted interest from trade buyers and sponsors, the sources said.

Hatecke posted gross profit of EUR 17m in FY15, up from EUR 14.6m in FY14, and EUR 14.1m in FY13, according to the company’s filings on German company register Unternehmensregister.

The firm is expected to operate at full capacity until 2020 due to the high number of orders originating from the boom in the cruise ship sector, while demand for lifeboats for freight vessels is slowing, according to the report.

Hatecke builds lifeboats, rescue boats and related lifting systems with headquarters in Lower Saxony, northern Germany. The family-run company dates back to 1903 and is owned and managed by Peter Hatecke.

Commerzbank declined to comment. Hatecke was not available for comment.