DP World’s Drydocks World has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with India’s Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL), a move prompted by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways of India. The alliance is intended to establish ship repair clusters throughout India, improving maritime infrastructure within the nation and increasing global competitiveness in the industry.

The partnership is aimed at introducing global best practices to India’s ship repair value chain, and more importantly, massively scaling up capacity. It will also pursue opportunities in offshore fabrication with major ports and other stakeholders. This project aligns with India’s overall Maritime India Vision 2030 and Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047, both geared towards keeping India’s maritime infrastructure at par with the world and making India a global maritime center.

The MoU was signed during the CEO-Connect: Dubai-India Economic Ties & Opportunities conference in Mumbai, with important leaders present, such as Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Piyush Goyal, Indian Minister of Commerce and Industry, Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, CEO of DP World, and Madhu S. Nair, CMD of Cochin Shipyard.

The collaboration states the following goals:

Establishing high-end ship repair clusters in Kochi (Kerala) and Vadinar (Gujarat).

Partnering with government organizations and large ports to augment ship repair and offshore fabrication capacities.

Growing into connected activities like marine engineering and strategic infrastructure initiatives.

Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem stressed that India’s extensive coastline and world-class ports make the country a possible global maritime hub, and this collaboration is crucial to realizing the government’s maritime vision. Meanwhile, Madhu S. Nair underscored the strategic aspect of this cooperation, which seeks to spur growth, develop capabilities, and enhance India’s competitiveness in the global maritime sector.