Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders (MDL), an Indian public sector company, has announced that it has decided to acquire a majority stake in Colombo Dockyard PLC (CDPLC).
“An investment not exceeding $52.96 million has been approved for the acquisition of controlling and significant stake in Colombo Dockyard PLC,” company sources confirmed.
A tripartite agreement was signed yesterday (June 27) between Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders, Colombo Dockyard and Japan’s Onomichi Dockyard, paving the way for the deal. Accordingly, MDL will acquire a controlling stake in Colombo Dockyard from the Japanese company.
Headquartered in Mumbai, Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders is a public sector shipyard under the Ministry of Defence of India, which is engaged in the construction of warships, submarines and commercial vessels.
Colombo Dockyard, which had been in a difficult situation for some time, was on the verge of defaulting on its loans. The Sri Lankan government had requested the Indian government to encourage Indian investors to invest in the shipyard.