Pipavav Shipyard to convert wet basin to second dry dock

India’s Pipavav Shipyard Ltd. has formally changed its name to Pipavav Defence and Offshore Engineering Company Ltd. The board has also taken a decision to convert the existing wet basin at the yard into a second dry dock to “enhance the company’s capabilities to cater to growing defense sector demand both within and outside the country.”

The shipyard originally consisted of two wet basins – one approximately 680 meters long and 65 meters wide, and the other approximately 680 m long and 60 m wide. The first of these was converted into the yard’s current dry dock measuring 662 m long by 65 m. Two Goliath cranes with a span of 150 meters and height of 175 meters together capable of handling up to a 1,200 ton block, and two level luffing cranes service this dry dock.

According to a Bombay Stock Exchange announcement, Pipavav has “commenced construction process of warships i.e. Naval Offshore Patrol Vessels (NOPVs) and has signed design engineering contract with a company under the aegis of Ministry of Defense, Russia within a span of two months from the date of award of contract by Indian Navy.”

The announcement says that the company “has initiated the process of working with governments of six friendly nations to build warships for them at the company’s facilities at Pipavav, besides working towards developing strategic maritime assets for one such friendly nation in accordance with guidelines/ policies of Government of India.”

The announcement says the company has signed a “major protocol with a company controlled by Russian Ministry of Defense for a potential contract of approx. US$ 2 billion.”

In another defense-related development, Pipavav says it is “aiming to augment suitable infrastructure to tap a significant opportunity to cater to the requirements of Indian army.”

Pipavav plans to take a  51 percent equity stake in Conceptia Software Technologies Pvt. Ltd., a ship design, engineering and consulting firm that also provides CAD services and markets engineering solutions. It is headquartered in Bengaluru and has offices in Delhi, Cochin and United Arab Emirates. It also has a subsidiary in Singapore  marketing its services and products in the Asia Pacific region. Conceptia has expertise in preparation of detailed designs and 3D modeling for ships and offshore oil and gas assets.

August 15, 2011