Andhra Pradesh Clears Greenfield Port, Shipbuilding Hub

07 Jan 2026 CW Team

The approval has been granted to the Andhra Pradesh Maritime Board under the Shipbuilding Development Scheme of the Ministry of Ports Shipping and Waterways, according to a government order issued by Special Chief Secretary for Infrastructure and Investment (Ports) M. T. Krishna Babu.

To monitor and fast-track the project, a Special Purpose Vehicle will be formed jointly by the Andhra Pradesh government and the ministry. The SPV will be supported by central government entities operating in the state, including the Visakhapatnam Port Authority.

As per the scheme guidelines, the Andhra Pradesh Maritime Board will create a 50:50 SPV with the Visakhapatnam Port Trust, with equal representation from the state government and the port authority on the board. The maritime board has also been authorised to complete land acquisition, mobilise resources and transfer the land to the SPV as the state government’s equity contribution.

The greenfield port and shipbuilding cluster will include the development of an anchor shipyard with an annual capacity of 0.5 million gross tonnage, which is to be achieved within 10 years of commissioning. The project will be coordinated jointly by the Visakhapatnam Port Trust and the Andhra Pradesh Maritime Board.

The state government has further empowered the maritime board to select a development partner for the shipyard. According to the government order, India has set a target of achieving shipbuilding output of 4.5 million gross tonnage per year under the Maritime India Vision 2030 and Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047, compared with the current capacity of around 0.01 million gross tonnage annually.

The proposed Dugarajapatnam project is expected to play a key role in supporting the national objective of positioning India among the world’s top five shipbuilding nations by 2047.

The Andhra Pradesh government has approved the establishment of a greenfield port and a National Mega Shipbuilding Cluster at Dugarajapatnam in Tirupati district, involving the acquisition of around 2,000 acres of land. The approval has been granted to the Andhra Pradesh Maritime Board under the Shipbuilding Development Scheme of the Ministry of Ports Shipping and Waterways, according to a government order issued by Special Chief Secretary for Infrastructure and Investment (Ports) M. T. Krishna Babu. To monitor and fast-track the project, a Special Purpose Vehicle will be formed jointly by the Andhra Pradesh government and the ministry. The SPV will be supported by central government entities operating in the state, including the Visakhapatnam Port Authority. As per the scheme guidelines, the Andhra Pradesh Maritime Board will create a 50:50 SPV with the Visakhapatnam Port Trust, with equal representation from the state government and the port authority on the board. The maritime board has also been authorised to complete land acquisition, mobilise resources and transfer the land to the SPV as the state government’s equity contribution. The greenfield port and shipbuilding cluster will include the development of an anchor shipyard with an annual capacity of 0.5 million gross tonnage, which is to be achieved within 10 years of commissioning. The project will be coordinated jointly by the Visakhapatnam Port Trust and the Andhra Pradesh Maritime Board. The state government has further empowered the maritime board to select a development partner for the shipyard. According to the government order, India has set a target of achieving shipbuilding output of 4.5 million gross tonnage per year under the Maritime India Vision 2030 and Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047, compared with the current capacity of around 0.01 million gross tonnage annually. The proposed Dugarajapatnam project is expected to play a key role in supporting the national objective of positioning India among the world’s top five shipbuilding nations by 2047.

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