India to bolster shipbuilding ties with S. Korea amid push to join global top 5 by 2047

Seoul/New Delhi, Oct 6 (IANS) India is seeking deeper cooperation with South Korea in the shipbuilding sector as it strives to become one of the world's top five shipbuilding nations by 2047, India's secretary for shipping has said, highlighting the need to combine Seoul's advanced technology with New Delhi's abundant manpower.

TK Ramachandran, Secretary of India's Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, made the remarks at a recent meeting with reporters from South Korea, Japan and other nations in New Delhi, saying India can serve as a key partner for South Korea given its workforce capacity, reports Yonhap news agency.

"Our only problem is that we need to get the technology and the necessary training modules from other countries or other partners," he said. "So we are collaborating with some of the top shipping countries in the world like South Korea or Japan because they have the skills but they don't have the manpower."

Ramachandran noted vast opportunities for bilateral cooperation in shipbuilding, noting South Korea's shipyards are already operating at full capacity.

"They have a capacity constraint as well because some of them are all booked up to 2028, so they don't have space to build any more ships ... they're getting orders but then they're not able to build them in Korea or Japan," he added.

Under the "Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047," New Delhi aims to move from its current 16th rank in global shipbuilding to among the top ten by 2030 and ultimately to the top five by 2047.

On Sept. 24, India's government approved a package worth around 697 billion rupees (US$8 billion) to revitalize India's shipbuilding and maritime sector and to expand domestic shipbuilding capacity, according to the Indian ministry's website.

"Shipbuilding for us is now a very important strategic as well as commercial objective because we have traditionally owned less than one percent of the world's shipping tonnage," Ramachandran said.

He noted that roughly 95 percent of the country's imports and exports depend on foreign-flagged vessels while only about 5 percent are carried on indigenous ships.

"We are trying to address this issue and we are trying to address (it) through collaboration with foreign countries," he said.

In line with such efforts, India has been pursuing partnerships with major shipbuilding nations, including South Korea and Japan, to strengthen its domestic construction capabilities and develop new shipyards.

From late November to early December, an Indian delegation led by Ramachandran visited Hanwha Ocean's Geoje facility, Samsung Heavy Industries' shipyard and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries' Ulsan shipyard in South Korea to explore potential areas of collaboration.

South Korea currently ranks among the world's top three shipbuilders along with Japan and China, and is home to global shipbuilding giants such as HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, Samsung Heavy Industries and Hanwha Ocean.

Ramachandran said India also aims to expand the number of its ships from the current 1,500 to 2,500 vessels, while increasing its indigenous domestic fleet of ships from the current 5 percent to 7 percent by 2030 and around 70 percent by 2047.

He added that during global crises such as the COVID pandemic and the Ukrainian war, freight rates surged from about US$2,000 to $15,000 per container, exposing India's vulnerability to external factors.

"Owning, building, flagging or registration, all three of the metrics ... we think that is not only commercially sensible but also strategically necessary for India," he said.

India's shipbuilding market is projected to grow significantly, from its $90 million value in 2022 to $8.12 billion by 2033, according to London-based market tracker Finextra Research.

The maritime sector remains a critical pillar of India's economy, accounting for around 95 percent of the country's trade by volume and 70 percent by value, according to government data.

--IANS

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