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Reliance Naval and Engineering Limited
20°55′20″N 71°29′58″E / 20.922351°N 71.499571°E
Reliance Naval and Engineering Limited, formerly known as Reliance Defence & Engineering Limited and prior to that as Pipavav Shipyard Limited (PSL) and Pipavav Defence & Offshore Engineering Company Limited[1] is an Indian shipbuilding and heavy industry company headquartered in Mumbai. The shipyard is located near the village of Pipavav in Gujarat, at a distance of 90 km South of Amreli, 15 km South of Rajula and 140 km South West of Bhavnagar. Reliance Naval was the first private sector company in India to obtain a license and contract to build warships and owns the largest shipyard in India.[3][4][5] HistoryPipavav Shipyard Limited was the original company. Joint venturesOn 12 September 2011, it was announced that Pipavav Shipyard entered a joint venture with Mazagon Dock Limited to collaborately build warships and submarines using Pipavav's facilities. The deal was intended to free up the congested order book of Mazagon shipyard and to give Pipavav a much needed boost in defence shipbuilding.[6] In February 2014, Pipavav announced a joint venture with Atlas Elektronik to build Heavy Weight Torpedoes.[7] Debt restructuringOn 26 March 2015, Pipavav Shipyard successfully implemented debt restructuring by raising additional debt of INR 5,500 crore resulting in total debt line in excess of INR 12,000 crore (about US$2 billion).[8] Reliance17.66 per cent of Pipavav Shipyard was acquired by Reliance Infrastructure Limited on 5 March 2015 in a US$130 mln deal.[9] Subsequently, Reliance Infrastructure launched an open offer to acquire additional shares to control 25.1 per cent of the company. After the open offer was completed, Reliance Infrastructure held 36.5% equity in Pipavav Shipyard and Anil Ambani was appointed as the chairman.[10] The company was renamed to Reliance Defence and Engineering on 3 March 2016 and again renamed to Reliance Naval and Engineering Limited on 6 September 2017.[11] In January 2020 Reliance Naval triggered a corporate insolvency process by defaulting on bank loan payments.[12] Swan EnergySwan Energy Limited, in partnership with Hazel Mercantile Limited, acquired Reliance Naval and Engineering Limited following the approval of their corporate insolvency resolution plan by the National Company Law Tribunal on 23 December 2022, as dictated by the applicable laws. [13] As part of the acquisition,[14] a new board of directors was appointed on 8 December 2023, and Swan Energy's management officially took over control of the company on 4 January 2024. All actions related to the acquisition proceeded in line with the approved resolution plan. Ships build by the company
Shipyard facilitiesThe shipyard is located in Port Pipavav and spreads over 500 acres (2.0 km2).[15] It has access to over 720 meters of exclusive waterfront. The shipyard has the largest drydock in India.[16] Its dry dock is 640 meters in length and is 65 meters in breadth, It can accommodate ships up to 400,000 tonnes DWT. Two cranes with a span of 140 meters & height of 85 meters together capable of handling up to 1200 tonnes block and two Level Luffing cranes are erected to service this dry dock. To facilitate afloat fit-out and commissioning of ships, including afloat repairs, a 300 meter long quay, with the capacity for berthing on both sides, adequate draft and serviced by a Level Luffing crane. The entrance of the dry dock also has a 100 meter extension track for the Goliath cranes for unloading heavy machinery and equipment weighing up to 1200 tonnes directly from ships and heavy lift barges.[17] Achievements and ordersIn June 2010, PSL was awarded a ₹26 billion (US$310 million) contract to build five offshore patrol vessels for the Indian Navy.[18] In July 2015, Pipavav Shipyard was chosen for a 'Make in India' naval frigate order. The order value exceeds more than US$3 bn. This order is being termed as the private sector's biggest-ever warship-building project.[19] On 13 February 2017, Reliance Defence and Engineering Limited signed the Master Ship Repair Agreement with the US Navy to maintain the vessels of its Seventh Fleet operating in the region, with the company estimating revenues of about Rs 15,000 crore ($2 billion) over next 3 to 5 years. The Seventh Fleet's area of responsibility included the Western Pacific and Indian Ocean and at any given time there were roughly 140 ships and submarines, 5070 aircraft and approximately 20,000 sailors under its command. Prior to this agreement, these vessels visited Singapore or Japan for such works. [20] As of 2024, the company has delivered five 74,500 DWT Panamax bulk carrier vessels since the start of commercial operations in June 2012.[21] See alsoReferences
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