Shipping

Colombo Dockyard Bronze Partner

SMP World Expo 2012:

Colombo Dockyard PLC the premier shipbuilding and S ship repairing yard in Sri Lanka participated as the Bronze Partner at the Shipping, Marine and Ports World Expo 2012 (SMP World Expo 2012) a maritime conference and technology exposition at the Bombay Exhibition Centre, Goregaon, Mumbai organized by the CHEMTECH Foundation recently and showcased its products and services.

Colombo Dockyard PLC pavilion at the exhibition

The event provided excellent business opportunities and a platform where the Shipyard met many representatives of the government, maritime bodies and the shipping industry.

The conference covered areas such as shipbuilding technologies, infrastructure requirements, maritime safety and security issues and many more relevant topics, while the exhibition was used to showcase the state of the art and innovative products, systems and processes in use.

The live coverage provided by the TV and press media ensured wide media publicity to this event. Mangala Yapa, MD / CEO Colombo Dockyard PLC addressed the SMP 2012 conference on the topic "Ship repair industry challenges" on invitation made by the advisory panel. The conference was attended by key players from the international shipping fraternity.

The inaugural opening ceremony was held under the patronage of Shri K. Mohandas Secretary Ministry of Shipping and Minister of Defence, Vice Admiral Ganesh Mahadevan COM, Ministry of Defence (Navy) was the chief guest for the proceedings held on February 9. High ranking government officials and many Indian private sector and foreign delegations added prestige to the Event.

As both nations have been enjoying cordial social, religious and trade relationships for well over twenty five centuries, and successive Indian administrations have especially hand picked Sri Lankan expertise for a range of tasks, including the services of Colombo Dockyard for many of its ship repairing and shipbuilding needs, Colombo Dockyard joining as a "partner" at the exhibition and conference came in to much praise by the shipping fraternity in India.

As neighbouring countries, our two nations have complimented each other throughout the years, with "healthy competition' that's been beneficial to both countries.

Since Sri Lanka is strategically located adjacent to the southern tip of the Indian sub continent, Colombo Dockyard has been able to cater to ship owners from both the east and west coasts with very minimal diversion cost/time.

Similarly, the current development of the port facilities in Sri Lanka is intended to develop Sri Lanka to be the 'trade gateway' between India and the rest of the world, as Hong Kong is for China and Singapore is for Malaysia. With India emerging as a global powerhouse, we in Sri Lanka stands to benefit from India's prosperity and Colombo Dockyard is ready' to serve the emerging needs of the Indian market.

The supportive policies of the respective governments such as the Indo-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement (the first FTA signed by India) have given the necessary impetus for the growth of bilateral trade. Further augmentation of these activities is expected through the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), which is being favourably considered by the two governments.

Additionally, with many internationally reputed OEMs setting up their service centres in Colombo, we have been able to strengthen our "position" as the premier marine hub of Asia.

Demonstrating our approach of "synergy", Nagasaki Semapaku Sobi (NSS) of Japan, GL Nobel Denton of Norway and Pership Group of Sri Lanka strategically joined Colombo Dockyard's pavilion at this SMP World Expo 2012 to portray a glimpse of the unique offers at disposal, when a ship owner or operator select 'Colombo Dockyard' to be the preferred shipbuilder or ship repairer. With the large base of Indian customers who have chosen Colombo Dockyard over competitor organizations for their shiprepair and shipbuilding needs, the company has maintained the dedication to producing good results, safe-guarding the trust and confidence placed by them in their capabilities.

With the dawn of peace and political stability in Sri Lanka, the company is now better geared and more than ready to offer Sri Lankan Excellence and Ingenuity coupled with its' strategic and synergistic alliances to all future Customers.

Somalia's fearsome pirates: unbeaten but under pressure

Foreign navies and armed guards on boats have badly dented the cutthroat capabilities of marauding Somali pirates, but ending the scourge requires land-based solutions, analysts warn. Somalia's pirates remain a fearsome force prowling far across the Indian Ocean seizing ships for ransom, costing the world billions of dollars each year and now branching out to increasing land-based attacks. "Success rates have plummeted, and pirates have a hard time capturing ships," said Stig Jarle Hansen, a Norwegian academic and Somalia expert, noting increased assaults by foreign navies on vessels used as pirate "motherships." One reason for the decline in successful attacks has been the increased use by shipping of armed guards and other security measures, said J. Peter Pham, of the Atlantic Council think tank.

"Most of the credit actually belongs to the shipping industry... whose adoption of defensive "best practices" and increased deployment of private armed security has effectively hardened vessels against seizure," Pham said.

But as successful attacks decline, ransom prices have risen: the average pay climbed to $5 million in 2011 from $4 million in 2010, according to the US-based Oceans Beyond Piracy monitoring group.

Somali attacks cost the world nearly $7 billion in 2011, including more than $2 billion for military operations, armed guards and equipment to protect ships, the group estimated in a report earlier this month.

Multiple pirate gangs hold a grim trophy haul of at least 34 vessels and over 400 hostages, according to the monitoring group Ecoterra, many seized by the use of small skiffs, grappling hooks and rocket-propelled grenades. However, while such "aggressive levels" of foreign naval patrols have thwarted attacks, such tactics provide no long-term solution, said Rashid Abdi, a long-time Somalia expert. AFP