Cochin Port invites expression of interest for ship repair facility

The Cochin Port Trust has invited expressions of interest from reputed firms to set up an international ship repair facility on a 45-acre plot close to the Mattanchery wharf, where an old ship repair facility already exists on an 800-metre water frontage.

The port will lease the workshop, dry dock and slipway for 30 years to the bidder. The repair yard is proposed to be developed under the BOT mode, in line with the Land Policy Guidelines for Major Ports 2010. The development of the yard, with its existing infrastructure for carrying out ship repair activities, will be the responsibility of the BOT operator.

The officials pointed out that the proposed project is likely to be set up on a PPP basis on the model of the operation of the Rajiv Gandhi Container Terminal by India Gateway Terminal Ltd. The 311 workers associated with the existing workshop and dry dock will be transferred to the BOT operator.

The proposed project includes utilising the existing ship repair facility for repairing small floating crafts and establishing a new graving dock with associated facilities such as dock slide railings, power house, repair shops and cranes. The development of the yard with its entire infrastructure for carrying out ship repair activities will be the responsibility of the BOT operator. The successful bidder will have to pay upfront for the buildings, dry-dock, slipway and all other existing plants and equipment.

According to the revenue-share model prepared by the port, the operator needs to pay a certain percentage of the contract receipts to the CPT every year, from the third year of the commissioning of the project. Extra dredging required for the project would be undertaken by the BOT operator.

According to port officials, the emergence of Kochi as a busy port and its being the closest port to the East-West shipping routes gives it a unique advantage in setting up a repair facility for ships. The port offers great potential for traffic of vessels ranging from barges to Panamax bulk carriers and VLCCs for bulk and liquid cargos.

The ICTT at Vallarpadam is the first in India and lies in a SEZ which is likely to achieve 2.5 million TEUs within the next three to four years. This offers added potential for a container repair yard as well. The proposed ship repair facility lies in a sheltered location in the Mattanchery channel allowing all-weather operations. The presence of Cochin Shipyard, the largest ship-building facility in India, at the backyard offers significant advantage in terms of the presence of ancillary industries, the officials said.

Besides, the impending commissioning of the LNG terminal, makes Kochi a suitable location for a ship repair facility that can service commercial vessels, offshore supply and service vessels, Coast Guard and Naval vessels, port service vessels as well as dredgers.

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