Dolphin Offshore, which has recently made a foray into the shipbuilding and repair business by bagging the Rs 300 crore, Jaffarabad shipyard venture from the Gujarat government, is reportedly in talks with L&T which is planning to set up a Rs 2,000 crore greenfiled shipbuilding yard which is likely to be docked in Chennai. Both the companies had completed the initial rounds of talks and a final decision is expected soon.
L&T, which announced its plan to ramp up its shipbuilding business by setting up a Rs 2,000 crore green-field project has been looking for a partner with experience in the field to kick start the venture. The engineering and cement giant already have a shipyard in Hazira in Gujarat.
Sources close to the development told FE that senior officials from Dolphin Offshore and L&T have had initial parleys on the issue but no decision has so far been taken. ?The talks have commenced sometime back. Both the sides are going through various details of the project. However, it is too early to talk about the outcome?, sources said. Officials of both the companies were not available for comment.
L&T is in the process of ramping up its shipbuilding and repair capability to cash in on the booming demand for vessels. The new shipyard is expected to have the facilities to manufacture big sized carriers including tankers for which demand is shooting up ever since the oil sector has been open up to private players. L&T had initially identified three states?Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu?to dock the new venture but had finally decided on Tamil Nadu.
Dolphin Offshore has been looking for opportunities in the shipbuilding and rig repair space to cash in the boom in the sector. The company had earlier bagged the mandate to build a shipyard in Jaffarbad from the Gujarat government. The Jaffarbad venture will also have the facilities to repair the jack up rigs, which is supposed to be the first time in the country. Dolphin Offshore is a mid-sized offshore drilling and maintenance company and had clocked a turnover of over Rs 76 crore for the six months ended September this year. The company stock had closed on the National Stock Exchange at Rs 293.45, down over 2% on Friday.