Udupi Cochin Shipyard Limited (Udupi-CSL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kerala-based shipmaking giant Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) secured a major order for the construction of four tugs from Ocean Sparkle Limited, the company announced on Thursday.
Ocean Sparkle Limited, an Adani Group company, has labelled the order “notable”, indicating that it had entered into a contract worth about Rs 100-250 crore for the vessels.
Specifically, the order is for the construction of four 70-tonne bollard pull azimuthing stern drive (ASD) tugs, an ET Infra report said.
These are basically highly manoeuvrable vessels, owing to the 360º-rotatable thrusters at the stern, that are typically used for harbour operations, such as ship berthing and unberthing.
Udupi-CSL will build the new tugs in line with the Approved Standard Tug Design and Specifications issued by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW).
Deliveries of the four ASD tugs will begin in November 2028 and conclude by June 2029.
This is a major order for the emerging CSL arm, which is currently engaged in a number of projects, including the construction of the sixth and final vessel in its Wilson Eco3800 TDW series contract.
The final vessel in the series comprising six 3,800 deadweight tonnage (dwt) eco-friendly general cargo ships will be delivered in June.
Featuring advanced diesel-electric propulsion systems, these vessels are also capable of being retrofitted with wind-assisted propulsion technologies, and operate well below the International Maritime Organization's (IMO) 2025 emission norms.
Also, the delivery of the final vessel will mean an important record for the Udupi-CSL: the delivery of seven vessels in roughly nine working months, or an average of one vessel every 45 days.
Back in March, the Cochin Shipyard arm had also announced significant growth in FY 2025-26, with the delivery of six vessels—four bulk carriers to Europe and two tugs for India.
Udupi-CSL is currently engaged with the construction of 10 tugboats for domestic customers and eight 6,300 dwt cargo vessels for markets abroad.
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