Cochin Shipyard, Global United Shipping India Bid to Make LNG Vessels for GAIL

Indian state owned Cochin Shipyard and Chennai-based Global United Shipping India have put in a joint bid to build six new LNG carriers for GAIL India, according to Business Standard, a financial daily.  

The bid is under the build–operate–transfer (BOT) model and is the only one from India.

The $7 billion tender has already received bids from two Japanese consortia, the first being Mitsui OSK Lines-Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha and the second being Mitsui & Co Ltd and Mitsubishi Corporation-Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha and GasLog.

The bid by the Indian consortium is late. “We are trying to talk to GAIL to consider late submission of this bid,” an official with Global United Shipping India told Business Standard. “The size and the magnitude of this project is large and, therefore, we faced some delays in being able to put together a formal offer.”

In December 2015, Cochin Shipyard was granted a licence agreement by France’s Gaztransport & Technigaz (GTT) for the construction of LNG carriers using GTT’s membrane containment systems.

According to the Cochin Shipyard-Global United bid proposal, two out of six vessels would be built in India at Cochin Shipyard, while four would be made outside the country, the newspaper reported.

GAIL has an agreement for purchase of 3.5 million tons a year of LNG from Sabine Pass on a FOB basis for 20 years. The supplies are expected to begin from the first quarter of 2018. The company also has a second 20-year deal with Dominion Resources for supply of 2.3 million tons per annum. Supplies from Dominion will also commence in 2018.