India has a strong potential to emerge as a hub for green shipbuilding as the government is pushing for alternative fuels and renewable energy, a maritime industry expert said on Wednesday. Cristina Saenz de Santa Maria, regional manager, Southeast Asia, Pacific and India, maritime, at Norway-based testing, certification and technical advisory service provider DNV, said modernisation and upgradation of Indian shipyards is ongoing, while old dockyards are being evaluated for reopening and adding more capacity for green shipbuilding. Global demand is seeing a boom.

Indian government is taking this initiative

According to the report, he said that the Indian government is encouraging investment and technology transfer from Japanese and Korean shipyards to set up shipbuilding and ship repair clusters in the country. This comes at a time when most conventional shipbuilding yards in Asia are fully booked, while demand for green-maritime assets is growing ahead of the phase-out of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, as set by the International Maritime Organisation, reports PTI. Shipowners are also investing in new environmentally friendly assets and looking for competitively priced yard space, Santa Maria said.

According to Santa Maria, DNV published a white paper titled 'Indian Coastal Green Shipping Programme in 2023' which studied India's potential to deliver a sustainable future for its maritime industry. Commissioned by the Royal Norwegian Consulate General in Mumbai, the paper provides insights on how coastal shipping can reduce India's carbon emissions and facilitate its transition to green shipping, based on the successful experience of Norway's Green Shipping Programme.

Upgradation of Indian port infrastructure is also underway

Upgradation of Indian port infrastructure is also underway to support ships running on hybrid models with access to green shipping fuel and alternative fuels. However, this is a long-term fuel development plan that should be rolled out in the coming years. He said the Indian government has stressed the need to be among the top 10 shipbuilding nations by 2030 and among the top five by 2047. He said India has emerged as one of the stable markets for DNV.