The public sector Cochin Shipyard Limited’s (CSL) bid to raise capital to the tune of Rs.700 crore by way of IPO (initial public offer) has been put on the backburner, with the Union government cold-shouldering the proposal sent by the yard some five months ago.
The yard was keen to sell 2.2 crore shares to raise adequate funds to carry out expansion of its fledgling international ship-repair (ISR) facility on the Cochin port premises. However, the IPO plan is least likely to fructify this year, going by indications.
This will mean that the yard will have to dig deep into its pocket to fund the Rs.970-crore state-of-the-art ship-repair facility – full with a shiplift and six repair berths – coming up in two phases, say sources.
Meanwhile, the facility is already operational, albeit partially, with the yard repairing 24 ships there over the past two years. The ‘exciting’ second phase of expansion will see a 6,000-tonne shiplift being put in place, which will considerably augment its ship-repair capabilities. With shipbuilding remaining in the doldrums the world over and fresh orders hard to come by, ship-repair is an area being tapped by yards to rake in the moolah.
Its plan to construct a large dry-dock measuring 300 metres in length with a width of 75 metres in the northern estate of the yard campus at Thevara is on schedule, with the detailed project report (DPR) in the final stages. Work on the dry-dock, expected to cost upwards of Rs.1,300 crore, is slated to get under way by the end of the year. Three years is the time envisaged to put it in place.
While its order book position remains uninspiring, the yard has been able to bag a Rs.190-crore contract for a large barge for NPCC, Abu Dhabi. It has pipped private yards to win the contract, and the vessel is slated to be delivered in the latter half of 2016.
It is pinning hopes on the LNG carrier project for which tender has been floated by GAIL (India) Ltd, to revitalise shipbuilding with high-end technology.
- Phase of expansion will see a 6,000-tonne shiplift.
