Cochin Shipyard to become 'Miniratna'

Kochi, July 18 (UNI) The Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) is set to achieve the ''Miniratna'' status conferred by the Ministry of Shipping, boosting the shipyard's target of gaining international standards.

As per the guidelines issued by the Department of Public Enterprises, grant of 'Miniratna' status will empower the CSL Board to take speedy decisions on capital expenditure, a CSL release here said today.

Cochin Shipyard has been consistently achieving outstanding physical and financial performance in the past few years and it achieved a record turnover of Rs 967 crore during 2007-08.

The Profit Before Tax for the year was Rs 149 crore, which was 74 per cent higher than the previous year. The Net Profit for 2007-08 was Rs 93 crore, compared to Rs 58 crore for 2006-07 (growth of 60 per cent).

Improved performance and profitability of the company had resulted in an increase in net worth from Rs 264 crore as on March 31, 2004, to Rs 429 crore as on March 31, 2008 (increase of 63 per cent).

The yard needs to create additional capacity in order to sustain the present growth momentum in future too. The conferring of the Miniratna status will help it achieve this at a faster pace, the CSL said.

The yard has proposed to set up a drydock to build and repair large ships. Besides, its proposal to create a separate division for small commercial ships has also received the Centre's nod and this facility is expected to be commissioned by mid-2009.

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