Mazagon Docks-Pipavav JV on hold; government to bring out JV policy soon

The defence ministry has decided to put on hold the joint venture of Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL) with private sector Pipavav Defence & Offshore Engineering Company (PDOL) in the wake of complaints by rival shipbuilders like ABG Shipyards Ltd and Larsen & Toubro Ltd.

Defence minister A K Antony today said the JV would be on hold till his ministry studied the complaints received from some private shipyards regarding the venture.

"The issue needs to be fully examined and settled before any forward movement takes place on this front. JVs must compete for contracts and should not get them on nomination basis," Antony said.

"We are treading on a new path and we would like to ensure that transparency is maintained at all levels," he added.
 
Pipavav Shipyard announced the formation of a joint venture with defence public sector unit Mazagon Dock Ltd in the second week of the current month, under which the two were to collaborate in the manufacture of warships and submarines.

Pipavav Defence & Offshore Engineering Company (PDOL), was to own an equal stake in the proposed joint venture, Mazagon Dock Pipavav.

The joint venture, the country's first public private partnership venture to build warships and submarines for the Navy, was primarily aimed at hastening the execution of the Indian Navy's Rs1,00,000-crore orders for Mazagon Docks, according to Nikhil Gandhi, chairman of Pipavav Shipyard.