Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) has signed a contract for constructing 20 fast patrol vessels (FPV) for the Coast Guard. Valued at Rs 1,500 crore, this is the biggest contract by the Coast Guard and is expected go a long way in beefing up the coastal security of the country.
The contract was signed in Delhi on Wednesday between Preethi Sudan, joint secretary in the Defence Ministry, and Bejoy Bhaskar, Deputy General Manager, Cochin Shipyard.
With this, the order book position of the company stands at 36 ships, valued at around Rs 6,000 crore. The yard now has orders for constructing 15 offshore support ships for various international owners apart from fresh orders for FPVs. Besides, the yard is constructing the prestigious indigenous aircraft carrier project for the Indian Navy.
The FPVs have a speed of 35 knots and a length of 50m. These are used for patrolling coastal areas and preventing insurgency. Under the contract, the first ship is to be delivered in 20 months, and therafter, one in every three months, a press relase said.
CSL has achieved phenomenal growth in the last few years. Despite global economic crisis, CSL continued to perform well in the year 2009-10. The profit before tax for the year improved by 34 per cent and stood at Rs 331.25 crore as against Rs 247.63 crore for the previous year. The net profit for the year 2009-10 was Rs 223 crore reflecting an increase of 39 per cent as compared to Rs 160 crore for the previous year.
The company could achieve a total shipbuilding income of Rs 1,012 crore during the year 2009-10 as against Rs 986 crore in 2008-09. During the year 2009-10, the company delivered five offshore support ships to various international owners located at Norway, Germany and USA. In the current year, the yard has already delivered six offshore support vessels for owners in USA and Netherlands.