Andhra Pradesh accelerates plans for mega shipbuilding cluster as Centre backs maritime push
New Delhi, March 29. The long-untapped potential of Andhra Pradesh’s vast coastline for shipbuilding and repair is finally moving towards realisation, with the State government advancing plans to create a major maritime industrial ecosystem backed by the Centre’s Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047.
With a 1,053-km coastline – the second longest in India after Gujarat – Andhra Pradesh is seeking to leverage its strategic geography to emerge as a key shipbuilding hub. A significant boost has come from the Government of India’s decision to identify Dugarajapatnam in Tirupati district as one of five priority locations for a national shipbuilding cluster, alongside sites in Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Odisha and Maharashtra.
Aligned with the national maritime vision, the state government has set an ambitious goal of establishing a “global shipyard” and capturing 25 percent of India’s shipbuilding capacity by 2047, The Hindu reported. This objective is anchored in the AP Maritime Policy 2024-29, approved last year.
In a decisive step, the government recently incorporated a special purpose vehicle – National Shipbuilding & Heavy Industries Park Andhra Pradesh Limited (NSHIP-AP Ltd.) – under the Companies Act, 2013. The SPV will develop common infrastructure such as dredging facilities, waterfront access, dry docks and utilities, and lease developed plots to private shipbuilders in the Dugarajapatnam cluster.
Earlier, the AP Maritime Board signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Visakhapatnam Port Authority to facilitate project execution. At the CII Partnership Summit 2025, the Board also entered into agreements with defence shipbuilding PSUs – Hindustan Shipyard Limited, Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Limited, and Goa Shipyard Limited – to act as anchor investors not only at Dugarajapatnam but also in smaller facilities planned at locations like Kakinada, a town with a historic shipbuilding legacy.
The Dugarajapatnam cluster is planned with a capacity of 1.20 million gross tonnage per year. Additional shipbuilding and repair facilities are being explored in Srikakulam and at Gangavaram in Visakhapatnam district. So far, about 3,500 acres have been identified for the Dugarajapatnam project, including space for downstream industries, and land acquisition is underway.
The report cited sources as saying that the Centre has granted in-principle approval and the state is scouting for a public-private partnership partner. Separately, the government last month issued a request for proposal for another shipbuilding cluster at Machilipatnam, with bids due by April 15.
Further strengthening the ecosystem, Andhra Pradesh’s IT and HRD Minister Nara Lokesh recently laid the foundation stone for an autonomous maritime shipyard and systems development centre by Sagar Defence Engineering at the Juvvaladinne fishing harbour in Nellore district, with an initial investment of ₹45 crore.
These new initiatives will add to the existing shipbuilding strength in Visakhapatnam, home to Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL), India’s oldest modern shipyard established in 1941. Once burdened by losses, HSL has turned around its performance, with turnover rising from ₹574 crore in 2019-20 to ₹1,471 crore in 2024-25.
HSL has delivered key projects to the Indian Navy, including INS Nistar, the first diving support vessel of its class, and a floating dock. Its current order book includes another diving support vessel and five fleet support ships, and the yard has emerged as the lowest bidder for 18 next-generation fast patrol vessels. It is also preparing to undertake, for the first time in India, the Medium Refit Life Certification of the submarine INS Sindhuvijay, and is exploring further submarine refit opportunities.
Visakhapatnam also hosts the highly secure Ship Building Centre under the Ministry of Defence, responsible for the indigenous construction of nuclear-powered submarines. The facility has already delivered ballistic missile submarines such as INS Arihant and INS Arighaat, while trials are underway for INS Aridhaman and another unnamed vessel. Work has reportedly begun on S5, a larger successor to the Arihant class.
Sources indicate that the Centre also plans to build at least six nuclear-powered attack submarines at the facility over the next decade, with the first two expected by 2036.
Together, these developments position Andhra Pradesh to emerge as one of India’s most significant maritime manufacturing and repair hubs in the coming decades.
