Udupi: Reviving the ship-building industry in coastal Karnataka, the Udupi-Cochin Shipyard Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Cochin Shipyard Ltd., a central public sector undertaking, delivered a 62-tonne bollard pull tug boat for Ocean Sparkle Ltd., a Adani Group company, at Malpe near Udupi. The tug boat is the first to be manufactured and delivered after CSL took over the shipyard from Tebma in September 2020.

With over 100 tugs, Adani Harbour Services Ltd., and Ocean Sparkle Ltd., are the largest tug owners and operators in India. Ritu Sanjay Kumar Kewalramani, wife of Adani Harbour Services CEO Sanjay Kumar Kewalramani did the naming and launching of the vessel in the presence of CSL Chairman and Managing Director Madhu S. Nair, Director (Technical) Bejoy Bhaskar, Udupi CSL CEO A. Harikumar, Deputy Commissioner K. VidyaKumari, Coastal Security Police SP Anshu Kumar and others.

The 62T bollard pull Azimuth Stern Drive (ASD) tugs are primarily intended for Harbour Towing and Ship Assist with Firefighting in water and Coastal Towing as secondary roles. The vessel is 33 m long, 11.9 m wide and has a 5.4 m draft with 500-tonne gross tonnage. It accommodates up to 12 crew members and has a guaranteed speed of 12.5 knots.

Built under the Indian Flag, its static bollard pull ahead is 62 tonnes. The tug is also the first to be built under the Approved Standard Tug Design and Specifications (ASTDS) of the Government of India for standardising Tugs operating in India and an achievement under the Atma Nirbhar Bharat programme, said Udupi CSL.

The company has also contracted two 70-tonne bollard pull tugs for Polestar Maritime Limited and six 3,800 TDW future-proof dry cargo vessels for Wilson ASA, Norway. Deep Sea Fishing Boats for Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) are also under construction at the yard.

Udupi CSL employs 450 personnel, 60% of them being direct employees from Karnataka and is expected to employ 800 personnel by next year. With new projects in hand, the company supports ancillary industries in the region.