SHIPBUILDING COMPANIES IN MAHARASHTRA
SHIPBUILDING COMPANIES IN MAHARASHTRA
Government of India approved the Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Policy (SBFAP) in the year 2016 under which the shipbuilding and ship-repair companies in India are eligible to avail assistance for the vessel building orders executed by them. This scheme is available till 31st March 2026.
Further, an assessment of the shipbuilding sector through a third party was conducted in 2024. The report highlighted a high employment multiplier of 6.4 of the shipbuilding sector and a huge potential for generating both direct and indirect employment. It also highlighted the challenges constraining the growth of shipbuilding in India like lack of domestic demand, high cost of financing, capacity & technology limitations, etc. To address these challenges, the Government of India, in September 2025, approved a comprehensive shipbuilding package including Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Scheme (SBFAS) and Shipbuilding Development Scheme (SBDS) to enhance India’s global competitiveness in shipbuilding and maritime sector.
These schemes are open to all shipyards in India. The Government notifies detailed scheme guidelines and eligibility criteria to ensure transparency, reduction of procedural delays and to ensure fair and meaningful participation of all shipyards. The Government undertakes stakeholder consultations with industry to facilitate participation of shipyards, including small and medium shipyards before releasing guidelines.
The guidelines for the SBFAS and SBDS were issued in December 2025 and the shipyards have started submitting applications under the said schemes. The approvals for financial assistance under these guidelines are yet to be issued. Therefore, as of now shipyards have availed of assistance for vessel building orders only under SBFAP scheme. Further, a shipyard can avail financial assistance for vessel building orders under either SBFAP or SBFAS. Additionally, the shipyard can avail financial assistance for capacity expansion under SBDS.
Applications under SBFAP, SBFAS and SBDS are applied on an online portal ensuring transparency, digitization and faster processing of applications.
This information was given by the Union Minister of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways, Shri Sarbananda Sonowal, in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.