The ship is in: L&T shows private shipbuilders can deliver on time

L&T's Kattupalli shipyard took just 36 months to build and deliver the offshore patrol vessel, even though this was the first OPV it had ever built

When L&T delivered Indian Coast Guard Ship (ICGS) Vikram in April 2018, the first of seven offshore patrol vessels (OPVs) ordered by the Coast Guard, the event was remarkable for two reasons. First, the delivery was on schedule, pleasantly surprising the Services that have long complained about lengthy time overruns by defence public sector undertaking (DPSU) shipyards.

Second, L&T’s Kattupalli shipyard took just 36 months to build and deliver that OPV, even though this was the first OPV it had ever built.

In contrast, when Goa Shipyard (GSL), the public sector’s premier OPV builder, got an order in April 1990