Croatian Tomislav Debeljak was seen as a savior when his DIV Group took over Kleven shipyard in Sunnmøre in 2020. But shortly afterwards the shipyard was declared bankrupt. Now he is being sued, and on the third day of the trial in Bergen it emerged that the father of nine is struggling financially. The court case about Kleven shipyard This is the case: Croatian Tomislav Debeljak and his DIV Group bought the 80-year-old Kleven shipyard in Ulsteinvik on Sunnmøre in March 2020. The shipyard was declared bankrupt three months later, and 441 employees were laid off. Now the bankruptcy estate of Kleven Verft is suing the Croatian owner and their insurance company for up to NOK 166 million. The trial will take place in Bergen and will last for two weeks starting on 8 November 2023. – Tomislav Debeljak has a very demanding financial and family situation. He may have to walk away if he is sentenced to pay more than NOK 100 million, said his lawyer Karl Rosén. Debeljak’s lawyers found documents which should show that last year he earned the minimum wage in Croatia, of less than NOK 120,000. NATTERNDEN?: The defendant Tomislav Debeljak sitting with his mobile phone, with his defenders around him. Photo: Therese Pisani / news – The biggest privatization in Europe The reason why Debeljak struggled financially was supposed to be that his large conglomerate DIV Group was under bankruptcy protection, among other things as a result of the sanctions against Russia. DIV Group was started by Debeljak’s father at home in the garage. Today they have around 4,000 employees, in more than 55 companies in 30 countries. Tomislav Debeljak told the court that in 2013 the group took over the large shipyard Brodosplit, in what he described as the largest privatization in Europe. According to the owner, the key to the yard soon turning a profit was that they were particularly good at cost control. They were supposed to have 25–30 employees who drove this. – We are the best in the world at a certain type of logistics, which the whole world is now copying, said Debeljak. It was this kind of cost control they tried to introduce at Kleven, according to him. Expensive toilet paper – At Kleven they bought (toilet) paper that was three times more expensive than the price in the shop, said Debeljak. He claimed in court that they soon realized that the costs in Kleven were far too great, and that the logistics were not completely under control either. A construction project was, among other things, delayed by 1.5 years, according to the Croatian. TRANSLATED: Tomislav Debeljak had the trial interpreted into Croatian continuously, and explained himself in Croatian. Here with one of his defenders. Photo: Therese Pisani / news He referred to a phrase in the industry: – Where a fool can build a ship, but not everyone is able to deliver on time, price and quality. Debeljak also said that he wanted to cut down on the use of electricians who received NOK 500 an hour. – 80 percent of the work they did was pulling cables, which all our employees could do for NOK 200 an hour. At the same time, we had over 300 employees at Kleven who did not have specific tasks. This is typical for companies that do not think enough about costs, said Debeljak. – Bad at finances His lawyers followed up: – We have talked a lot about what Kleven Verft was good at, namely building ships. But we haven’t talked much about what Kleven was bad at: Finances, said Debeljak’s lawyer Karl Rosén. He also reminded that Kleven Verft became part of the DIV Group with the acquisition: – It is possible that people did not like this in Ulsteinvik, but legally and in fact that is how it was, said Rosén. KLEVEN: The shipyard is located in Ulsteinvik, and is among the largest in Norway. Photo: Øyvind Sandnes / news Luftfoto Debeljak’s lawyers blamed the banks for the bankruptcy of the Kleven shipyard. – I have never experienced similar behavior from banks as I have experienced here, said Debeljak. He meant that he was both misunderstood and opposed by key personnel and the banks of Kleven Verft. It was also claimed that some would have dual roles that worked against the new Croatian owner. – No plans for bankruptcy The defense also talked about the alleged monopoly that Debeljak should have introduced: – Debeljak only got signature rights when he became chairman of the board in Kleven, and that is quite normal. The same also applies to the neighbor in Ulstein Verft and their parent company, the lawyer told the Croatian. The defense also showed an e-mail in which the Croatian group management expressed surprise that the banks stopped all financing of the Kleven shipyard. It happened a few hours after a turbulent meeting between chairman Debeljak and the banks. – This clearly shows that there was no plan in place that Debeljak had personally planned to drive Kleven Verft into bankruptcy, said the lawyer. – Was shocked by debt The Croat was also asked about the strong allegations about an alleged attempt to empty the Kleven shipyard’s cash register of NOK 61 million, and that the finance manager in Ulsteinvik should have received the message just before midnight: – If you don’t do this , you are not protected – Is that how you remember it? asked his lawyers. – We must protect our employees, and if they feel threatened, they must tell us in management about it, then I will try to protect them, replied Debeljak, and added: – That I was blamed for stealing something (cash register) shocked me, I who have nine children and am a serious businessman. – No blackmail or blackmail The lawyers for ex-chairman Debeljak also came out against the claims that the Croatian owner had blackmailed subcontractors. They showed several e-mails in which the Croatian DIV Group tempted to renegotiate existing agreements, in a pleasant tone. They also showed documents which after the corona outbreak showed that expectations for the economy in Kleven went from 40 million plus to 14 million minus. NEW SPRING: The atmosphere was significantly better when Tomislav Debeljak took over the Kleven shipyard in March 2020. Photo: Alf-Jørgen Tyssing / Alf-Jørgen Tyssing
ttn-69
Says he is a father of nine on minimum wage, sued for 130 million
