Japanese shipping major MOL in talks with govt to build ships in India

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Japanese shipping major Mitsui OSK Liners (MOL), the world's second largest company in terms of fleet size, is in talks with the Indian government to build ships in the country to become part of India's maritime growth story, a top official said on Tuesday.

MOL (India) South Asia Middle East Region Executive Officer Capt Anand Jayaraman said MOL (India) has re-registered 13 ships in India (10 under MOL India and 3 under IFSC) out of its total fleet of 935 vessels.

"We are a shipowner company...India is where growth is, and the country has also announced a subsidy scheme for the shipping sector," he said in a media briefing.

According to Jayaraman, the 141-year-old company is currently the 4th largest shipowner in India, and it aspires to become 2nd largest shipowner in India.

"Aligning with the government of India's push, we are discussing with the government to build ships in India...Shipbuilding is a high capital-intensive business. We will work with shipyards," he said.

Jayaraman also said MOL India will place an order for medium-range ship tankers from Cochin Shipyard soon.

"We want to be a part of India's maritime growth story...We want to be the leader in green shipping," he said.

Jayaraman also announced that MOL India will enter into railway logistics very soon, and some announcement in this regard may come this year or early next year.

He also said that MOL intends to invest in 3-4 startups in India.

Recently, Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) Sarbananda Sonowal had said shipbuilding and ship repair clusters will be established in five states, including Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra.

The ministry is working on a new shipbuilding scheme, which would incentivise Indian shipyards till 2035 by various measures.

India is seeking investments and technology transfer from South Korea and Japan to establish shipbuilding and ship repair clusters to promote the domestic shipping supply chain in the country.

Currently, India holds less than 1 per cent of the global shipbuilding market, dominated by China, South Korea, and Japan.