Cochin shipyard to bag orders for green tugs

Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority, the state-owned entity that runs India’s second busiest container gateway, will place an order for building two green tugs at Cochin Shipyard Ltd in the next three months, according to the Minister of Ports,  Sarbananda Sonowal.

The Ministry has also “advised” Deendayal Port Authority, Paradip Port Authority and V O Chidambaranar Port Authority to order two new green tugs each, most likely at Cochin Shipyard. It is yet to be decided whether the four major ports will float tenders to acquire the tugs or give the orders on nomination basis to Cochin Shipyard.

The government has picked the tugboat segment to embark on its journey to green Indian shipping and the transition involves trying out the hybrid technology ahead of opting for full-fledged sustainable solutions, Tugboats are used for various purposes such as to pull and push big cargo ships and guide them into and out of a port, operate as a standby vessel for safety and for emergency requirements. Tugs require high power only when they are pulling or pushing big vessels; otherwise only minimal power is sufficient.

A green tug practically will operate on battery or other green fuels during normal operations and when it requires peak power it will necessarily have to have a diesel engine on board. So, when we talk of green tug, it will be a hybrid tug to begin with,” Building green tugs has been a topic of discussion in the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways for a while as part of a larger plan to promote use of non-fossil fuels/alternate fuels in the shipping industry.

“It’s something that every country is now pursuing. The general thinking was that the first thing we can probably address is tugs because it is not going into international waters, it mainly operates in coastal areas and in ports. The Ministry also felt that since major ports are under its control, they may be advised to acquire a few green tugs. This way the plan can be implemented much easier and the private sector can then follow,” a Ministry official was quoted by media reports.

The plan gained traction at the ‘Chintan Shivir’ held recently by the Ministry at the hill station of Munnar in Kerala, where it was decided that the country should move forward on adopting green solutions without delay. “We cannot keep this waiting, so why don’t we look at a few green tugs/hybrid tugs in the waters as early as possible,” the official said.