Plans for a ship repair complex for Willingdon

KOCHI: Foreseeing a steady flow of business in the ship repair sector, the Cochin Port Trust has been mooting a proposal to set up a Ship and Container repair complex at Willingdon Island in Kochi. The ambitious proposal has been included in the master plan for development of the port.“The binding requirements of periodic repairs of commercial ships ensure a steady revenue. Due to erosion and other factors, ships require periodic inspection and maintenance of hull and machinery. Kochi has certain advantages when it comes to ship repair. Apart from being a major port, Kochi has the advantage of proximity to the International East West shipping routes. The port offers potential traffic of vessels ranging from barges to Panamax bulk carriers,” pointed out officials. Being in close proximity with the International Container Transshipment Terminal (ICTT) offers an added potential for the container repair yard.As per the layout proposed in the master plan, an area of 45 acres east of Mattanchery channel including the existing dry dock and ship repair facility has been allotted for the purpose. The new facility will be developed with minimum dislocation of the existing workshop and repair yard. The proposal suggests setting up of a dry dock which will be able to service commercial vessels, offshore supply and service vessels, Coast Guard and Naval ships, port service vessels and dredgers. The dry dock should have a capacity to dock 30 to 40 vessels annually. Services including under water hull inspection, cleaning and painting of hull will be carried out here. The container repair yard is planned to cater to the needs of shipping lines calling at ICTT and Container Corporation of India. The proposed yard, to come up at 4.85 acres of land, will be able to repair 1000 TEUs at any point of time. The yard will be close to the repair workshop.The presence of Cochin Shipyard, one of the major ship building facility in the country offers significant advantage in terms of presence of ancillary industries for the proposed yard. Also the Sethusamudram project has the potential to increase traffic of coastal vessels, said Port Trust officials.