New Delhi: In a ceremony witnessed by Santosh Jha, the Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, two of the Indian Ocean’s most prominent maritime institutions came together on Tuesday to sign an agreement that experts say could significantly deepen the sub-regional maritime economy.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Dredging Corporation of India Limited (DCIL) and Colombo Dockyard PLC (CDPLC) covers comprehensive drydocking and ship repair services for DCIL’s operational fleet at Colombo Dockyard’s world-class facility.
The agreement was formally executed by Capt. S. Divakar, Managing Director and CEO of DCIL, and Thimira S. Godakumbura, Managing Director and CEO of CDPLC. The signing ceremony also saw the presence of Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited’s chairman and managing Director, along with other senior directors, underscoring the strategic importance India’s shipbuilding industry places on this bilateral relationship.
MDL, which holds a strategic stake in Colombo Dockyard PLC as an associate company, played a pivotal role in brokering and facilitating this partnership. The state-owned defence shipbuilder described the deal as part of its broader commitment to generating tangible commercial value for CDPLC and reinforcing India’s maritime footprint across the Indian Ocean Region, Mazagon Dock said in a post on X.
For Colombo Dockyard, the partnership opens a significant new revenue stream by tapping into the steady maintenance demand of India’s expanding dredging fleet – vessels that are central to India’s ambitious port infrastructure and waterway development programmes.
