Prior to the sale announced Tuesday, both companies – USC and STX Finland – each owned half of the shipyard and operated it jointly.
“I am convinced that USC is committed to developing Arctech (Helsinki shipyard) over the long term,” said chief executive Esko Mustamäki.
“This is a good foundation for future operations. We also believe in the owner’s commitment to further strengthening the company compared to its previous ownership structure,” he added.
The Russian shipbuilder announced its interest in acquiring the Hietalahti dockyard last October even though it was on a list of Russian companies facing western sanctions over the crisis in Ukraine.
The parties did not disclose how much money changed hands in the deal, but the Russian politics and business daily Kommersant has estimated that the sale price was about 20 million euros.
The Arctech Helsinki Shipyard specialises in arctic marine technology, and has special expertise in constructing icebreakers, six of which are currently in production. All will be handed over to Russia, except for one icebreaker being built for the Finnish Transport Agency.
USC currently employs roughly 500 shipbuilders. It operates a group of shipbuilding, repair and maintenance companies in western, northern and far eastern Russia.