The counterparty that torched the orders, Vard Holdings, shed light on the revelation in an announcement published Friday evening.

"The Board of Directors of Vard Holdings Limited wishes to inform that on12 March 2015, the company was notified that two affiliates of ER Offshore, our customer, have filed for insolvency at a local court in Germany," it said.

The shipbuilder added: "On 13 March 2015 the group terminated the two shipbuilding contracts."

Vard