02-19-2008, 12:42 PM
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>L&Tâs Kattupalli shipyard SEZ plans get under way</b>
Mumbai: With the Tamil Nadu cabinet clearing the project, Larsen and Toubro Ltd (L&T) will move ahead to set up a Rs3,000 crore new shipyard-cum-port project at Kattupalli in Thiruvallur district of Tamil Nadu as a special economic zone (SEZ). The planned port will also have a facility to handle container cargo, say company officials who did not wish to be identified.
The cabinet clearance will pave the way for L&T to sign a memorandum of understanding with the state government to set up the project through a joint venture with the state-owned Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corp. Ltd (Tidco). L&T will hold close to 98% stake in the joint venture.
The cabinet approval will also allow L&T to acquire about 1,200 acres of land from Tidco to set up the project. Once the land is in its possession, L&T will submit a proposal to the Union commerce ministry to develop the project as a SEZ that will build cargo ships, warships, offshore oil rigs and other heavy engineering products.
L&T plans to start construction work on the project after the SEZ is notified. The commerce ministryâs decision on the SEZ is expected within two months of L&T submitting the application. L&T is currently negotiating shipbuilding orders worth $1-2 billion (Rs3,930-7,860 crore) with global shipowners.
The proposed shipyard at Kattupalli will be capable of building 25 ships a year and repair 50-60 ships annually.
When fully operational, the shipyard-cum-port project is likely to employ close to 10,000.
L&T plans to begin building ships by end-2009 and deliver the first ship 12-14 months later. Mint had first reported on 4 July that L&T had picked Kattupalli for the SEZ project.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>L&T bags Rs 1,443-cr Dutch order</b>
13 Feb, 2008
AHMEDABAD: High-Tech specialised cargo vessels with the âmade-in-Indiaâ tag will soon set sail as L&T will hand over the first of eight high-tech heavy lift vessels. L&T is manufacturing the vessels for a Netherlands-based firm at its Hazira shipbuilding yard in Surat. The order, worth e250 (Rs 1,443 crore), placed by the Netherlands-based Rollerdock to the Mumbai-based engineering giant, is one of the biggest in the Indian shipbuilding sector.
âThe first of the heavy lift vessels will be delivered to the Netherlands company in April this year. This is a very specialised vessel (RORO) and is of 8,300 tonnage each. It can take extremely heavy cargo by truck or lift,â said a senior official of L&T Shipping. The deal, struck between the two companies in August last year, marks the foray of L&T into the highly technical area of shipbuilding â an area where the Dutch have years of skill and expertise.
âThe Rolldock project with L&T involves the expertise of several leading Dutch companies that are leading players in manufacturing ship parts, sales, distribution and repairs,â the Holland Marine Equipment MD Martin Bloem told ET.
Mr Bloem is on a six-day India visit and will visit several cities in India with a delegation of officials from various Netherlands-based companies who are leaders in various aspects of the shipbuilding trade.
âL&T marked its entry into this field in April 2006 by securing an order from the Netherlands-based Rolldock (earlier Zadeko Ship Management) for four heavy-lift semi-submersible cargo ships, technically described as RORO.
The company placed orders for four more vessels of the same specifications subsequently,â said the L&T official.L&T ventured into the shipbuilding business last year. by converting a part of its heavy engineering complex at Hazira into a yard that could build three mid-size ships a year with a cargo-carrying capacity of 15,000 to 20,000 tonnes.
India has around 20 shipyards, majority of them being state-owned, but none has the kind of capacity L&T has at its yard. Cochin Shipyard, which can build the largest ships currently, can build ships with a cargo-carrying capacity of 110,000 tonnes.
With capacities in traditional shipbuilding countries such as Japan, South Korea and Norway booked for the next few years, fleet owners across the world have started looking at new destinations such as China, Vietnam and India.
Indiaâs share in the global shipbuilding business is expected to grow to around 15%, or $22 billion, by 2020 from the current 0.4%, aided mainly by cost competitiveness and abundant supply of skilled manpower, according to a source in the shipping industry.
âThe Dutch have excellence in making specialised vessels, which is the current trend in shipbuilding sector compared with other countries who make only large vessels. The technology we use and the systems are of high-end quality. India can emerge as one of the leading players in shipbuilding if it specialises in these areas with out co-operation, said Mr Bloem.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Mumbai: With the Tamil Nadu cabinet clearing the project, Larsen and Toubro Ltd (L&T) will move ahead to set up a Rs3,000 crore new shipyard-cum-port project at Kattupalli in Thiruvallur district of Tamil Nadu as a special economic zone (SEZ). The planned port will also have a facility to handle container cargo, say company officials who did not wish to be identified.
The cabinet clearance will pave the way for L&T to sign a memorandum of understanding with the state government to set up the project through a joint venture with the state-owned Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corp. Ltd (Tidco). L&T will hold close to 98% stake in the joint venture.
The cabinet approval will also allow L&T to acquire about 1,200 acres of land from Tidco to set up the project. Once the land is in its possession, L&T will submit a proposal to the Union commerce ministry to develop the project as a SEZ that will build cargo ships, warships, offshore oil rigs and other heavy engineering products.
L&T plans to start construction work on the project after the SEZ is notified. The commerce ministryâs decision on the SEZ is expected within two months of L&T submitting the application. L&T is currently negotiating shipbuilding orders worth $1-2 billion (Rs3,930-7,860 crore) with global shipowners.
The proposed shipyard at Kattupalli will be capable of building 25 ships a year and repair 50-60 ships annually.
When fully operational, the shipyard-cum-port project is likely to employ close to 10,000.
L&T plans to begin building ships by end-2009 and deliver the first ship 12-14 months later. Mint had first reported on 4 July that L&T had picked Kattupalli for the SEZ project.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>L&T bags Rs 1,443-cr Dutch order</b>
13 Feb, 2008
AHMEDABAD: High-Tech specialised cargo vessels with the âmade-in-Indiaâ tag will soon set sail as L&T will hand over the first of eight high-tech heavy lift vessels. L&T is manufacturing the vessels for a Netherlands-based firm at its Hazira shipbuilding yard in Surat. The order, worth e250 (Rs 1,443 crore), placed by the Netherlands-based Rollerdock to the Mumbai-based engineering giant, is one of the biggest in the Indian shipbuilding sector.
âThe first of the heavy lift vessels will be delivered to the Netherlands company in April this year. This is a very specialised vessel (RORO) and is of 8,300 tonnage each. It can take extremely heavy cargo by truck or lift,â said a senior official of L&T Shipping. The deal, struck between the two companies in August last year, marks the foray of L&T into the highly technical area of shipbuilding â an area where the Dutch have years of skill and expertise.
âThe Rolldock project with L&T involves the expertise of several leading Dutch companies that are leading players in manufacturing ship parts, sales, distribution and repairs,â the Holland Marine Equipment MD Martin Bloem told ET.
Mr Bloem is on a six-day India visit and will visit several cities in India with a delegation of officials from various Netherlands-based companies who are leaders in various aspects of the shipbuilding trade.
âL&T marked its entry into this field in April 2006 by securing an order from the Netherlands-based Rolldock (earlier Zadeko Ship Management) for four heavy-lift semi-submersible cargo ships, technically described as RORO.
The company placed orders for four more vessels of the same specifications subsequently,â said the L&T official.L&T ventured into the shipbuilding business last year. by converting a part of its heavy engineering complex at Hazira into a yard that could build three mid-size ships a year with a cargo-carrying capacity of 15,000 to 20,000 tonnes.
India has around 20 shipyards, majority of them being state-owned, but none has the kind of capacity L&T has at its yard. Cochin Shipyard, which can build the largest ships currently, can build ships with a cargo-carrying capacity of 110,000 tonnes.
With capacities in traditional shipbuilding countries such as Japan, South Korea and Norway booked for the next few years, fleet owners across the world have started looking at new destinations such as China, Vietnam and India.
Indiaâs share in the global shipbuilding business is expected to grow to around 15%, or $22 billion, by 2020 from the current 0.4%, aided mainly by cost competitiveness and abundant supply of skilled manpower, according to a source in the shipping industry.
âThe Dutch have excellence in making specialised vessels, which is the current trend in shipbuilding sector compared with other countries who make only large vessels. The technology we use and the systems are of high-end quality. India can emerge as one of the leading players in shipbuilding if it specialises in these areas with out co-operation, said Mr Bloem.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->