France’s Meta Shipyard (Meta Chantier Naval) has been placed in receivership.
The shipyard was founded by self-taught metallurgist Jean Ficaud who in 1952 took advantage of his workships to build his first 11m steel motor-sailor, the Sainte Marthe in 1952.
Arguably the most famous craft built by the shipyard was Bernard Moitessier’s legendary ketch, the Joshua 40, which was built in just three months in 1962 and which the French sailor took part in the first edition of the Golden Globe non-stop round-the world yacht race.
Since then, up to 70 craft were built using the Joshua 40 designs.
The shipyard’s Strongall assembly process was patented and adopted in 1977. The Strongall technique is based on a self-supporting aluminum deck hull built using thicker sheets for strength and longevity.
Using the Strongall process, the shipyard abandoned steel as a meterial in favour of aluminium and has since built more than 300 sailboats, motorboats and trawlers using this method.
Production boat
The company began diversifying its range in 2016, building hulls for various floating projects including a floating restaurant and in 2019, Meta began working on its first production boat, the Meta 36.
The management of the company changed hands in 2020 with Philippe Brabetz taking over and renaming the shipyard Meta Yachts.
The shipyard’s turnover has grown over the last five years, partly due to orders for professional boats.
The turnover reached €1.7 million in 2024 but suffered a loss on the construction of a scientific vessel for INRAE.
It is understood the shipyard won a tender for the construction of two 21m river bus boats from Paris municipalities but is facing delays in payments for these craft.
It is hoped the administration process will allow the company to get back on track with a search for investors or buyers underway.
