Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) has announced that its Board of Directors, in a meeting held on September 9, 2026, approved the formation of a 50:50 joint venture with Drydocks World Dubai FZCO (DDW), a DP World group company, to own, operate and manage CSL’s International Ship Repair Facility (ISRF) at Willingdon Island, Kochi.
The joint venture company (JVCo) will be incorporated as an unlisted private limited company based in Kochi, Kerala. The ISRF undertaking will be transferred to the JVCo on a slump sale basis as a going concern, at a valuation of not less than Rs 1,800 crore, representing approximately 30.55% of CSL’s net worth of Rs 5,892.83 crore as of March 31, 2026. Cochin Shipyard will receive half of that consideration in cash and the remaining half in shares of the new venture.
Control of the board will not be split evenly, however. Drydocks World will nominate three of the joint venture’s five directors, along with key leadership roles including the CEO, CFO and COO, while Cochin Shipyard will nominate the other two directors.
The ISRF, developed over 30 hectares at Willingdon Island, was built at a cost of Rs 970 crore and specialises in the dry-docking, maintenance, repair and overhaul of commercial and naval vessels up to 130 metres in length and 6,000-tonne weight. The facility generated revenue of Rs 207.33 crore in FY26, contributing about 4.81% of Cochin Shipyard’s revenue from operations. The joint venture also plans to augment the ISRF’s capacity by adding ten new workstations.
The JV Agreement is scheduled to be signed on September 11, 2026. The proposal requires approvals from the Cochin Port Authority, the Government of India and CSL’s shareholders, and is being treated as a related party transaction due to CSL’s shareholding in the JVCo, though it is being undertaken on an arm’s length basis. Implementation of the proposal is anticipated before the end of the current financial year.
Cochin Shipyard has said the objective is to combine its shipbuilding and repair capabilities with Drydocks World’s international experience, advanced technologies and operating processes. The expected outcomes include improved quality, greater efficiency, shorter turnaround times and the ability to undertake more complex and high-value repair projects in India.
The arrangement builds on an Agreement of Heads of Terms signed between the two companies at India Maritime Week 2025 in Mumbai in October 2025, under which Drydocks World and CSL agreed to jointly develop India’s first ship repair cluster at the ISRF. India’s ship repair and maintenance market is growing at 8-10% annually, but currently loses a significant share of potential repair business to foreign drydocks due to limited domestic facilities and longer turnaround times, a gap the Kochi cluster is intended to address as part of India’s Maritime India Vision 2030 agenda.
