Colombo Dockyard on a high

2006 was an extremely busy one for Colombo Dockyard Limited (CDL) while 2007 is set to be even busier, having executed many prestigious shipbuilding and ship repair contracts against stiff international competition for export and domestic markets, the company said.

“All these new orders are mainly, results of CDL?s good track record, having established a favourable reputation for building and delivering vessels of the best quality at competitive prices and attractive delivery times,” it said in a statement this week. CDL in 2006 successfully constructed and delivered the remaining balance of seven aluminium hull fast vessels out of an order for units to a local client. Equipped with water jets, these boats can reach speeds in excess of 53 knots. CDL has been the principal supplier of this type of boat over the past three decades.

In addition, one 58 tonne bollard pull tug out of a three boat order, was delivered to the A.A. Turki Corporation (ATCO) of Saudi Arabia during the last quarter of 2006.

The second and third tugs are scheduled to be delivered within the first quarter of 2007.

CDL is currently building two large size ocean going Anchor Handling Tug Supply vessels (AHTS) with a 80 tonne bollard pull for Greatship (India) Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of one of India?s largest private sector shipping companies, the Great Eastern Shipping Company.

This year marks the deliveries of a 35 metre Fisheries Protection Craft and a 40 metre Fisheries Protection Vessel for the Maldives National Defence Force of the Republic of Maldives. The Maldives has been a market that CDL exploited in the late 1980s and CDL has been able to sustain this market through its relentless efforts of cooperation.