Dugarajapatnam shipyard to attract Rs 15,000-crore MDL investment

Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders will develop a greenfield shipyard at Dugarajapatnam in Andhra Pradesh with an envisaged investment of Rs 15,000 crore over five to seven years. The project will have 1.2 million gross tonnes annual capacity and generate around 45,000 jobs

Amaravati: Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL), a Navratna Defence PSU under the Ministry of Defence, will develop a modern greenfield shipyard at Dugarajapatnam in Andhra Pradesh, it was announced on Friday.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to this effect was signed between MDL Chairman and Managing Director Captain Jagmohan (retd) and National Shipbuilding and Heavy Industries Park-Andhra Pradesh (NSHIP-AP) Managing Director Praveen Adhithya on Friday in the presence of Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, according to an official release.

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The Andhra Pradesh government is envisaging the development of a greenfield shipbuilding-cum-port cluster at Dugarajapatnam. The Techno-Economic Feasibility Report estimates the cost of the shipbuilding and ship repair yard at approximately Rs 29,254 crore and the port at Rs 9,513 crore. The port is proposed to be developed by the Centre.

Under the MoU, MDL envisages an investment of around Rs 15,000 crore over the next five to seven years, subject to the required approvals and clearances. The project is expected to generate direct and indirect employment for around 45,000 people in Andhra Pradesh.

The proposed shipyard will have a design capacity of 1.2 million gross tonnes per annum, with scope for further expansion based on market requirements. It will build commercial vessels, including tankers, bulk carriers, container ships, LNG carriers and other large specialised vessels.

The shipbuilding cluster is being developed under the Centre’s Shipbuilding Development Scheme (SbDS). NSHIP-AP, a special purpose vehicle jointly formed by the Andhra Pradesh Maritime Board and Visakhapatnam Port Authority, has identified MDL as the anchor shipyard.

In his remarks on the occasion, Chief Minister Naidu said Andhra Pradesh was committed to being at the forefront of India’s ambition to become one of the world’s top five shipbuilding nations by 2047. He said the state would leverage its long coastline, strategic location and industrial ecosystem to drive growth in the maritime sector.

“India has set an ambitious vision of becoming one of the world’s top five shipbuilding nations by 2047. Andhra Pradesh is committed to being at the forefront of this journey by leveraging its long coastline, strategic location and industrial ecosystem,” he said.

Naidu said the Dugarajapatnam shipbuilding cluster, with MDL as the anchor shipyard, would position Andhra Pradesh as a major shipbuilding hub and attract investments and ancillary industries to the state.

He said the project would also create large-scale employment and new opportunities in shipbuilding, marine engineering, manufacturing, logistics and other allied sectors.

MDL CMD Capt Jagmohan (retd) said Dugarajapatnam had the scale and maritime potential to develop a globally competitive shipyard. He said MDL aimed to create a modern facility serving both domestic and international markets.

Visakhapatnam Port Authority (VPA) Chairperson Jasmeet Singh Bindra said VPA, as a 50 per cent shareholder in NSHIP-AP, was committed to the development of the shipbuilding cluster and would support coordination with the Central government and other Central agencies.

Andhra Pradesh Secretary, Infrastructure and Investment, Kona Sasidhar, said the selection of MDL as the anchor shipyard was an important milestone in the state’s maritime development. He said the project had the potential to create a major shipbuilding and ancillary ecosystem at Dugarajapatnam.

The Andhra Pradesh Maritime Board will facilitate land, infrastructure and statutory clearances required for the timely development of the project.