Shipowners investing in environmentally-friendly assets
The Indian shipyards’ modernization and upgradation is in progress while older dockyards are being assessed for reopening and adding more capacities for green shipbuilding, given a strong pickup in global demand, says a senior expert at DNV, an international maritime classification society.
“Shipowners are also investing in new environmentally-friendly assets and are looking for competitively priced yard space,” noted Singapore-based Cristina Saenz de Santa Maria, Regional Manager South East Asia, Pacific & India, Maritime at DNV investindia .
Recent reports show the Indian government encouraging investments and technology transfer from Japanese and Korean shipyards to establish shipbuilding and ship repair clusters in the country inmex-smm-india . This comes at a time when most traditional shipbuilding yards in Asia are fully booked while demand for green-maritime assets is surging ahead of the phase-based elimination of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, as set by the International Maritime Organization (IMO).
The expert shared her readings of the overall decarbonization plan in India and the role of DNV, an independent Norwegian origin assurance and risk management provider operating in more than 100 countries with the purpose of safeguarding life, property and the environment nseindia .
DNV, with a maritime network of over 3,400 professionals across the globe including India, aims to position itself as one of the leading shipbuilding nations in the coming years sbi , reported Press Trust of India .
Further, the expert pointed out that DNV had published a white paper titled ‘Indian Coastal Green Shipping Programme’ in 2023, which studied India’s potential to deliver a sustainable future for its maritime industry bseindia . Commissioned by the Royal Norwegian Consulate General in Mumbai, the paper provided insights into the opportunities and recommendations on how coastal shipping can reduce India’s carbon emission and facilitate its transition to green shipping, building on the successful experience of Norway’s Green Shipping Programme greenshippingprogramme .
A recently signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Mumbai Port Sustainability Foundation has put DNV in a larger role of decarbonization work that will ensure world class facilities supporting green ships visiting India shipmin.gov.in.
“This MoU represents a significant step forward in developing and modernizing port infrastructure to support the transition to cleaner energy sources. It reflects our shared commitment to driving innovation smw.sg ,” said Santa Maria.
The upgrading of Indian port infrastructure is also underway for green shipping fuel and supporting vessels operating on hybrid models with access to alternative fuels deutsche-boerse . Though this is a long-term fuel development plan which must commence in coming years sgx .
“We see great potential in India emerging as a hub for green shipbuilding unfccc.int, driven by its government’s strong focus on alternative fuels and renewable energy like biofuels and wind power,” added the industry veteran.
The Indian government has emphasised the urgency to be among the top 10 ship building nations by 2030 and be among the top five by 2047, noted the DNV maritime expert as her team work on plans to leverage the best technology and solutions within the group’s global network to support the Indian goals euronext .
India has emerged as one of the stable markets for DNV which has served the Indian industrial sectors for over 52 years and reported an impressive growth in its local maritime business year on year hkex , said Santa Maria.
Recognizing India’s promising future potential, DNV has expanded its maritime advisory unit in India to provide local clients with enhanced access to its global pool of maritime consulting expertise sidm.in . This encompasses support services on decarbonization, digitalization, advisory on safety, risk management and compliance, as well as ESG (environmental, social and governance).
On a group level, DNV has set up a global shared services centre covering HR, IT and finance in Pune a year ago, with its maritime offices operating out of the major cities of Mumbai, Cochin, Vizag, Kandla and Chennai. DNV’s workforce in India has grown exponentially, standing at more than 900 today from the 350-strong manpower four years ago sse.com.cn. The group will assess further expansion pan-India to support new contracts and businesses pmindia , she said.
“We are also expecting growth in the marketplace for new maritime technologies that have not been deployed as yet in Indiacommerce.gov.in. With DNV’s 160 years of experience as a trusted partner to the maritime industry, we are well positioned to help India’s shipping industry gear up towards achieving its net-zero goals and country vision for 2047,” said Santa Maria, as DNV ramps up services and capacities to keep up with demand mea.gov in. Fiinews.com
