India Maritime Week: Govt to soon release norms for shipping programmes

Guidelines to steer next phase of India's maritime ambitions

In a move that will formally roll out the investment road map for the maritime economy, the central government is set to issue guidelines for the shipbuilding cluster development and financial assistance schemes worth ₹45,000 crore, industry and government sources told Business Standard.

 

“Three rounds of industry consultations have already taken place, and the fourth was held on Thursday. Investment plans for the industry are ready, and the formal rollout will start the process,” an industry executive said. 

The Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Scheme will be extended until March 31, 2036, with a total corpus of ₹24,736 crore. The scheme aims to incentivise shipbuilding in India and includes a shipbreaking credit note provision with an allocation of ₹4,001 crore.

The earlier shipbuilding assistance programme saw limited uptake. To attract more participants this time, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has standardised the benefits to be provided to shipyards over the delivery period. 

“This time, we don’t want to leave any stone unturned to ensure that the scheme receives overwhelming interest, which is why multiple consultation rounds have been held. In a couple of weeks, the guidelines will be out,” a government official confirmed.

A National Shipbuilding Mission will also be established to oversee the implementation of all initiatives.  

The Shipbuilding Cluster Development Programme includes capital support for shipbuilding clusters — ₹9,930 crore for greenfield clusters and ₹8,261 crore for brownfield capacity expansion.

 

Shipbuilders at the India Maritime Week said they are preparing expansion projects and new facilities to avail themselves of the scheme’s benefits. A risk coverage corpus of ₹1,443 crore will also be set up to protect shipbuilders against buyer defaults.

 

The overall package is expected to unlock 4.5 million gross tonnes of shipbuilding capacity and generate nearly 3 million jobs. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said shipbuilding will be among India’s top priorities over the next 25 years and also met global leaders of the world’s largest shipping and shipbuilding companies.