Cochin Shipyard Ltd has approved a 50:50 joint venture with Drydocks World – Dubai FZCO, a DP World company, to operate its International Ship Repair Facility at Willingdon Island, Kochi. The ISRF will be transferred to the JV via slump sale for not less than Rs 18 billion (bn), with half the consideration payable in cash and the remainder through shares. The JV will be incorporated as a private limited company under the Companies Act, 2013, with its registered office in Kochi.

The facility will handle dry-docking, maintenance, repair and overhaul of commercial and naval vessels of up to 130 metres in length and 6,000 tonne (t) in weight, and the partners intend to add ten workstations. The JV will own, operate and manage the ISRF and aims to combine the partners' expertise in ship repair across international and domestic markets. DDW will have the right to nominate three of the five directors on the JV board while Cochin Shipyard will nominate two.

The ISRF occupies around 30 hectares at Willingdon Island on land and water areas leased from the Cochin Port Authority for sixty years and was constructed at a cost of Rs nine point seven bn. The facility has a 6,000 tonne ship lift and transfer system, six workstations and about 1,400 metres of berthing space, enabling handling of up to six vessels simultaneously and an annual throughput of up to 82 ships. It was inaugurated in January 2024 and began commercial operations in August 2024.

For the financial year 2026 the ISRF generated Rs two point zero seven bn and accounted for around four point eight one per cent of Cochin Shipyard's total revenue from operations. Its value, based on third party independent valuations, stands at Rs 18 bn, equivalent to around 30.55 per cent of Cochin Shipyard's net worth as of 31 March 2026. DDW will also be entitled to nominate senior management personnel including the chief executive officer, chief financial officer and chief operating officer as applicable.