A ‘Made in India’ commercial shipbuilding blueprint emerges

By 2030 will more commercial ships be stamped, ‘Made in India’? Ranked 20th in the world in shipbuilding in 2024, India is aiming to climb into the top 10 shipbuilding countries by 2030, and top five by 2047. To elbow its way up the leader board beside China, South Korean, Japan, Italy and Germany, India will have to overhaul its policies toward commercial shipbuilding, invest heavily in upgrading its shipyard facilities and domestic supply chains, and make financing easier.

A blueprint for making its shipyards more competitive in the global market is beginning to take shape. On 1 February, Indian finance minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, revealed plans during her speech on the Union Budget for 2025-2026 to create a Maritime Development Fund (MDF) to support long-term investment in the domestic maritime industry. MDF would be funded with RS25,000 crore (US$2.86Bn), 49% of which would be provided by the government, with the balance supplied by ports and the private sector. Additionally, she said the country’s Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Policy would be revamped to address cost disadvantages to promote the development of the entire shipbuilding ecosystem.

“This will support the growth of India-flag vessels and enable banks to provide INR-denominated loans”

Chowgule & Co executive director, Arjun Chowgule, welcomed the news, saying the revamp of the Shipbuilding Financial Policy would “provide more confidence to shipbuilders to invest in capacity enhancements for scale and new technologies to improve productivity levels.” He emphasised the inclusion of large ships in the infrastructure list “will support the growth of India-flag vessels and enable banks to provide INR-denominated loans, reinforcing India’s position in global supply chains. These initiatives mark a significant step towards strengthening the industry’s global competitiveness and long-term sustainability.”

Chowgule is one of the country’s leading engineering and shipbuilding conglomerates. Its Chowgule Shipyard’s current orderbook includes six 5,350-dwt ice-class hybrid-electric general cargo vessels for Sweden’s AtoB@C Shipping and 12 6,000-dwt diesel-electric hybrid general cargo ships and four 10,700-dwt diesel-electric hybrid tweendeckers for the Netherlands’ Vertom Group.

As India’s economy depends on maritime trade, it is ratcheting up its naval shipbuilding plans, too, adding dozens of high-spec warships over the next decade to protect its interests. It commissioned its first domestically constructed aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant, in 2022. The 40,000-t aircraft carrier was built by one of the country’s largest shipbuilders, Cochin Shipyard Ltd in Kochi, Kerala.

At its Udupi Cochin Shipyard Ltd, the Indian shipbuilder’s orderbook includes six methanol-ready dual-fuel-hybrid-electric commissioning service operations vessels (CSOVs) for Pelagic Wind Services and 14 general cargo carriers for Norway’s Wilson ASA, including six 3,800-dwt, diesel-electric vessels and eight 6,300-dwt, diesel-electric vessels, all for delivery between 2025 and 2028.

Based on Conoship International’s CIP6300 design, the larger vessels will transport general cargo in European coastal waters and prioritise “flexibility and energy efficiency”, with optimised hull lines to reduce fuel consumption, a diesel-electric propulsion system, and an option to install VentoFoil wings.

HAV Group subsidiary Norwegian Electric Systems is designing and supplying the electric propulsion power systems for eight newbuilds, which will be delivered between Q2 2026 and Q2 2028.