SCI plans $3 bn investment

State-owned Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) unveiled an ambitious plan to add 60 million tonnes of vessel capacity in the Eleventh Plan with an investment of $ 3 billion, to meet the growing trade requirements of the company. The public sector enterprise recently placed orders for four Aframax crude oil tankers and two LR-II size product tankers with South Korea-based Hyundai Heavy Industries. The $400 million contract signed by SCI is the largest-ever shipbuilding deal in terms of value.

According to the SCI chairman and managing director, S. Hajara, the contract with Hyundai was part of the block of 12 vessels for which SCI received approval from the government earlier this month. The other two projects in the block are four Panamax bulk carriers and two 5,000 TEU container vessels. SCI is processing these two projects and details would be finalised soon, he said.

With the signing of these contracts, SCI?s order book position has increased to 18 vessels, all of which would be delivered between October 2008 and April 2011. SCI has plans to acquire another 56 vessels in various size categories during the Eleventh Plan and has already floated global tenders for acquisition of Panamax bulk carriers.