THOUSANDS of workers at Kvaerner are facing fresh fears for their jobs ahead of a crucial shareholders meeting which will determine the group's future.

The Anglo-Norwegian engineering group, which has been on the brink of bankruptcy for weeks, said it would continue in business until an extraordinary shareholders meeting in Oslo on Thursday to vote on a rescue plan.

In a statement, Kvaerner, which employs about 1,500 staff on Teesside, said funding had been agreed until the end of the week through new loans from its major banks and an amendment to payment terms for a major project.

The refinancing plan requires a two-thirds majority at the shareholders' meeting, but Kvaerner's biggest shareholder - and rival - Aker Maritime is expected to vote against after its own rescue plan was rejected by Kvaerner's board.

A spokesman said the group will be in a "very critical" position if the rescue plan was not accepted on Thursday and warned that bankruptcy could not be ruled out. Danny Carrigan, national officer of the Amalgamated Engineering and Electrical Union, said: "The continued uncertainty about Kvaerner's future is deeply damaging to the morale of the workforce.

"We are speaking to the management as a matter of urgency to try to clarify the position."