L&T shipyard completes order for 54 fast interceptor boats ahead of time
In an
emphatic statement of warship building capability in the private sector, Larsen
& Toubro’s Hazira shipyard handed over the last vessel in an order of 54
fast interceptor craft to the Coast Guard on Sunday — ahead of time and within
the budget.
With
the four public sector shipyards — Mazagon Dock, Mumbai; Garden Reach
Shipbuilders & Engineers, Kolkata; Goa Shipyard; and Hindustan Shipyard,
Visakhapatnam — invariably delivering warships years behind schedule and beyond
budget, L&T has staked a powerful claim to be considered for future
shipbuilding orders.
The
FICs delivered to the Coast Guard are 90-tonne vessels that can patrol the
coastline at a scorching speed of 45 knots (83 kilometres per hour). L&T
has built the 54 vessels for just under Rs 1,500 crore.
L&T
is now contending strongly for a number of naval contracts.
The
biggest of these, which will indicate how serious the defence ministry is about
bringing in the private sector into defence production, is for building six New
Generation Missile Vessels (NGMVs) for an estimated Rs 13,600 crore. Multiple
shipyards submitted bids in February in response to the navy’s Request for
Proposals (RfP).
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