INDIA BUSINESS WORLD SEPTEMBER (16th - 30th) 2007
The Month that was ...
MUMBAI'S ABG SHIPYARD BAGS $210-M ESSAR CONTRACT TO BUILD 6 CARRIERS
THE Ruias-owned Essar Shipping & Logistics (ESLL) has placed a mega order for constructing six bulk carriers with ABG Shipyard. The Mumbaibased private ship-builder will construct six geared Supramax bulk carriers and the contract is valued at $210 million.
The vessels, with a length of 190 metre, beam width of 32.26 metre and 54,000 deadweight tonnage (dwt), will be built at an estimated cost of $35 million each. These ships will be delivered between December 2009 and March 2011, and will be fitted with 36-tonne cranes with the grab.
"It's a strategic investment in line with Essar's future plans. The drybulk market is very hot now, and it is going to remain attractive for a few more years," ESLL director Sanjay Mehta said. He added that the double-hull and double-bottom vessels would incorporate latest technologies.
Essar Shipping, a subsidiary of ESLL, already owns and operates 27 ships including very large crude carriers (VLCCs), product tankers and bulk carriers. ESLL is a part of Essar Global (EGL). According to Mr Mehta, the acquisition has been made keeping in view the increased demand for larger-size vessels in the handymax segment of the dry bulk trade.
"These vessels will be in high demand over the coming years considering the fact that the entire handymax segment is inching towards larger tonnage. We will deploy these vessels in global trade," said Mr Mehta. These vessels will also be environment-friendly and comply with the latest and the most stringent International Maritime Organisation (IMO) regulations.
ESLL has five subsidiaries-Essar Oilfields Services, Vadinar Oil Terminal (VOTL), Essar Logistics and Essar Bulk Terminal and the listed Essar Shipping (ESL). VOTL has set up a crude oil and petroleum product terminal capable of handling 32 million tonnes of crude oil and a tank farm for crude oil and product storage, and handling facility at Vadinar in Gujarat.
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