On May 5, German defense contractor Rheinmetall officially confirmed that it is in talks with global shipping giant MSC to acquire the historic Mangalia shipyard, which filed for bankruptcy last month.

In fact, MSC had been eyeing the deal for some time. It extended an olive branch a year ago, when the Romanian government first began restructuring the shipyard. Now, the three parties have essentially reached an agreement: Rheinmetall and MSC will hold the majority stake, while the government will not contribute cash but instead value the shipyard’s land and equipment as equity, retaining a small stake to remain involved.

Rheinmetall is in charge of the naval sector and plans to start with four warships; MSC, meanwhile, is focusing on commercial vessels, as it has a large fleet and significant demand for both ship repairs and newbuilds. Last year, MSC also mentioned that it was willing to pay for ship repairs in advance to help the shipyard bring its workers back.

Mangalia was established in 1976, partnered with South Korea’s Daewoo in the 1990s, and was acquired by the Dutch firm Damen in 2018. Unfortunately, it officially declared bankruptcy last month.

Now Rheinmetall is also ramping up its involvement in the shipbuilding industry. It has just announced plans to acquire the German NVL shipyard and has partnered with MSC—one focusing on military vessels and the other on commercial ones, with a clear division of labor.

If this plan comes to fruition, it would not only save a shipyard for Romania but also present an opportunity to re-enter the European shipbuilding arena. Of course, there are still many hurdles to overcome between signing the agreement and breaking ground. But at least, the lights by the docks are about to come on.