Svitzer partners with Cochin Shipyard Ltd to construct four electric harbour tugs in Kochi - The HinduBusinessLineSENSEX 76,469.92 -474.36NIFTY 23,883.50 -172.30CRUDEOIL 8,568.00+ 32.00GOLD 150,300.00 -1,429.00SILVER 227,198.00 -2,351.00SENSEX 76,469.92 -474.36NIFTY 23,883.50 -172.30NIFTY 23,883.50 -172.30CRUDEOIL 8,568.00+ 32.00CRUDEOIL 8,568.00+ 32.00GOLD 150,300.00 -1,429.00'; } document.getElementById("lgdv").innerHTML = htmlElements; } function numberformat(i) { return Number(parseFloat(i).toFixed(2)).toLocaleString('en', { minimumFractionDigits: 2 }) } async function gatherResponse(response) { const { headers } = response; const contentType = headers.get('content-type') || ''; if (contentType.includes('application/json')) { return await response.json() } return response.text(); } function getWidth() { if (Math.max(document.body.scrollWidth,document.documentElement.scrollWidth,document.body.offsetWidth,document.documentElement.offsetWidth,document.documentElement.clientWidth) > 991) { document.getElementById("mob").style.display = "none"; document.getElementById("lgdv").style.display = "block"; } else { document.getElementById("mob").style.display = "block"; document.getElementById("lgdv").style.display = "none"; } } getWidth();]]>Deniz Kirdar True, Managing Director – Asia, Middle East and Africa (AMEA), SvitzerDenmark-based global towage provider Svitzer is partnering with Cochin Shipyard Ltd to construct four electric harbour tugs in Kochi as part of its global fleet renewal and expansion programme.Deniz Kirdar True, Managing Director – Asia, Middle East and Africa (AMEA), Svitzer, said the company is betting on India’s growing capabilities in building advanced, lower-emission vessels for international markets. India, according to her, is increasingly moving beyond a maritime policy focused primarily on ports and trade towards developing a broader industrial ecosystem encompassing shipbuilding, marine technology, skills, financing and green-vessel manufacturing.What the Svitzer-CSL partnership signals for India’s emerging green shipbuilding capabilities?India is accelerating its shipbuilding ambitions through a three-pronged strategy: the Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Scheme, a ₹25,000 crore Maritime Development Fund, and the Shipbuilding Development Scheme for new clusters and yard modernization. These initiatives provide subsidies, affordable financing, and infrastructure support to make Indian shipyards globally competitive and position India among the world’s top shipbuilding nations by 2047.Svitzer brings global towage expertise and the requirements of a next-generation battery-electric tug, while CSL brings the infrastructure, skilled workforce and shipbuilding capability to deliver it in India. That combination of Indian capability, international demand and next-generation technology is what makes this project particularly meaningful for India’s green shipbuilding journey.How electric harbor tugs can contribute to the Green Tug Transition Program (GTTP) and reduce emissions from port operations?Tugs are the single best place to begin electrifying a port. They work intensively at high power, over short radii, and return to the same berth — which is precisely what battery-electric propulsion is good at when charged with green power, enable zero direct emissions during port and terminal towage operations.GTTP is a world-leading initiative and very few governments globally have established such a structured and phased commitment towards green towage.The programme provides a clear pathway for the transition towards cleaner harbour craft and creates greater certainty for operators, shipbuilders and technology providers. For Svitzer, this aligns closely with our own global ambition to decarbonize our fleet and support the development of lower-emission solutions for harbour towage.Whether India can emerge as a hub for next-generation, low-emission vessel manufacturing?India has many of the building blocks required to become a globally competitive hub for next-generation, low-emission vessel manufacturing. The Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047 sets an ambition for India to be among the world’s top five countries in ship ownership and shipbuilding by 2047.This ambition is supported by encouraging growth in domestic shipbuilding, with the latest UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) data showing shipbuilding output increased by 41%, from 40,923 GT in 2024 to 57,637 GT in 2025.What is the role of international maritime companies and Indian shipyards in advancing the Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047 ambitions?International maritime companies can bring global demand, operational experience, technology requirements and international standards, while Indian shipyards bring the industrial capability, skilled talent, infrastructure and local execution needed to translate these requirements into vessels built in India.The Svitzer–CSL partnership creates an international commercial use case for Indian shipbuilding, bringing together Svitzer’s global towage expertise and next-generation vessel requirements.Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047 targets 4.5 million GT of annual shipbuilding output and partnerships that connect Indian shipyards with international operators can help strengthen the demand, technology exposure and operational experience needed to achieve that ambition.What is Svitzer’s broader India strategy, including its recent partnership in Gujarat, and the potential for these technologies to be deployed across Indian ports?India is an important part of Svitzer’s fleet growth and renewal strategy, and our partnerships with Cochin Shipyard and Swan Defence and Heavy Industries reflect two important investments in India’s shipbuilding capability.With CSL, we are building four battery-electric 26-metre TRAnsverse 2600e tugs, while our agreement with Swan Defence in Gujarat covers four 32-metre TRAnsverse 3200 tugs, with deliveries scheduled from Q1 2028.We see an opportunity to bring different lower-emission towage solutions to different operating environments across India. As India’s maritime ecosystem develops, we will continue to assess opportunities to deploy the right vessels and technologies where they can deliver operational and sustainability value.What will be required to scale green tug adoption across India’s ports and terminals?Scaling green tug adoption will require the right combination of technology, charging and supporting infrastructure, commercial viability, skilled people and an ecosystem capable of supporting these vessels throughout their lifecycle.This is where the broader development of India’s maritime ecosystem becomes important. The Government is working simultaneously on shipbuilding capacity, financing, infrastructure and skills, while initiatives such as GTTP are creating a policy direction for green tug adoption.For industry, the next step is to bring these elements together through partnerships between ship owners, ports and terminals, shipyards, technology providers and policymakers. Different ports will have different operating requirements, so scaling should be driven by solutions that are technically appropriate, commercially viable and capable of delivering meaningful environmental benefits.Published on September 2, 2026Sign into Unlock benefits!Access 10 free stories per monthAccess to comment on every storySign up/Manage to our newslettersGet notified by email for early preview to new features, discounts & offers${ ind + 1 } ${ device }Last active - ${ la }