Mazagon Dock, Goa Shipyard likely to merge

Govt could decide ahead of former's public listing

The central government is considering mergers of similarly placed state-owned companies in the defence sector. The first among these could be of Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders (MDS) and the smaller Goa Shipyard Ltd (GSL), this newspaper has learnt.

The idea, say senior government sources, is to ensure more attractive valuation for investors as the Centre prepares for public listing of MDS in the stock exchanges. The Centre owns 100% stake in both companies.

“They have a similar profile and their facilities are relatively close to each other in geographical terms. A merger is being considered and might happen before the MDS listing,” said