Swan Defence and Heavy Industries Limited

History

Pipavav Shipyard Limited was the original company. Pipavav Shipyard is now known as Swan Defence and Heavy Industries.

Joint ventures

On 12 September 2011, it was announced that Pipavav Shipyard entered a joint venture with Mazagon Dock Limited to collaborately build warships and submarines using Pipavav's facilities. The deal was intended to free up the congested order book of Mazagon shipyard and to give Pipavav a much needed boost in defence shipbuilding.

In February 2014, Pipavav announced a joint venture with Atlas Elektronik to build Heavy Weight Torpedoes.

Debt restructuring

On 26 March 2015, Pipavav Shipyard successfully implemented debt restructuring by raising additional debt of INR 5,500 crore resulting in total debt line in excess of INR 12,000 crore (about US$2 billion).

Reliance

17.66 per cent of Pipavav Shipyard was acquired by Reliance Infrastructure Limited on 5 March 2015 in a US$130 mln deal. Subsequently, Reliance Infrastructure launched an open offer to acquire additional shares to control 25.1 per cent of the company. After the open offer was completed, Reliance Infrastructure held 36.5% equity in Pipavav Shipyard and Anil Ambani was appointed as the chairman.

The company was renamed to Reliance Defence and Engineering on 3 March 2016 and again renamed to Reliance Naval and Engineering Limited on 6 September 2017.

In January 2020, Reliance Naval triggered a corporate insolvency process by defaulting on bank loan payments.

Swan Energy

Swan Energy Limited, in partnership with Hazel Mercantile Limited, acquired Reliance Naval and Engineering Limited following the approval of their corporate insolvency resolution plan by the National Company Law Tribunal on 23 December 2022, as dictated by the applicable laws. As part of the acquisition, a new board of directors was appointed on 8 December 2023, and Swan Energy's management officially took over control of the company on 4 January 2024. All actions related to the acquisition proceeded in line with the approved resolution plan.

In January 2025, the new name, Swan Defence and Heavy Industries Limited, became effective and the company relisted on the Indian stock exchanges.

On 24 September, the shipyard signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Netherlands-based Royal IHC to collaborate on te construction of Offshore Construction Vessels. The Royal IHC's representative in India, Alar Infrastructure, is also part of the agreement which includes the design, construction and retrofitting of multiple types of ships like Offshore Construction Vessels, Pipe Laying Vessels, and Multi-Purpose Offshore Support Vessels at SDHI's infrastructure based in Pipavav Port. The shipyard features India's largest dry dock with a dimension of 662 m × 65 m along with a fabrication capacity of 144,000 tons per annum.

On 28 October, Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders (MDL) and Swan Defence and Heavy Industries Limited (SDHI) signed an Teaming Agreement (TA) to partner for the LPD project of the Indian Navy. The agreement includes both design and construction of the vessels which will be undertaken by MDL and Swan Defence, respectively.

Ships built by the company

• Golden Brilliant
• Golden Bull
• Golden Suek
• Golden Diamond
• Golden Amber
• Golden Ruby

Shipyard facilities

Swan Defence and Heavy Industries is home to India's largest shipyard. The shipyard is located in Port Pipavav and spreads over 600 acre. The shipyard has a 1.2 km sea front to support activities including activities like berthing, docking and launching of vessels.. The shipyard has the largest drydock in India. The dry dock which measures 662 meters in length and 65 meters in breadth, can accommodate ships up to 400,000 DWT. The dry dock is also home to India’s largest Goliath Crane, with a lifting capacity of 600 MT, spanning 148m and hook height of 75m. The facility also features a 100-meter extension track for the Goliath crane to unload heavy machinery and equipment directly from ships and heavy lift barges. Additionally, 2 ELLs of total 80 MT capacity add to the operational heft of the dry dock. A wet basin of 340m x 60m with 5m to 6m draft provides for berthing, assembly and launch of vessels.

The shipyard has a 1.2 km sea front to support activities including activities like berthing, docking and launching of vessels. The state-of-the-art shipyard is home to one of India's largest fabrication sites in a special economic zone (SEZ) – a dedicated 2.41 Mn sq. ft. of covered shed which allows year around fabrication.

Achievements and orders

In June 2010, PSL was awarded a contract to build five offshore patrol vessels for the Indian Navy.

In July 2015, Pipavav Shipyard was chosen for a 'Make in India' naval frigate order. The order value exceeds more than US$3 bn. This order is being termed as the private sector's biggest-ever warship-building project.

On 13 February 2017, Reliance Defence and Engineering Limited signed the Master Ship Repair Agreement with the US Navy to maintain the vessels of its Seventh Fleet operating in the region, with the company estimating revenues of about Rs 15,000 crore ($2 billion) over next 3 to 5 years. The Seventh Fleet's area of responsibility included the Western Pacific and Indian Ocean and at any given time there were roughly 140 ships and submarines, 5070 aircraft and approximately 20,000 sailors under its command. Prior to this agreement, these vessels visited Singapore or Japan for such works.

As of 2024, the company has delivered five 74,500 DWT Panamax bulk carrier vessels since the start of commercial operations in June 2012.

On 10 November 2025, the shipyard signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) with Norway-based ship owner and operator, Rederiet Stenersen AS, to supply six IMO Type II chemical tankers. The contract will be worth $220 million. The vessels, with a 18,000 deadweight tonnage capacity, will be designed by Norway's Marinform AS & StoGda Ship Design & Engineering and classified by DNV. They will be built to Ice Class 1A standards while fitted with an advanced hybrid propulsion. They will feature a modular design to be converted into methanol or LPG carrier while the battery capacity can be enhanced to 5,000-kWh.

On 23 January 2026, the shipyard received the $227 million contract from Rederiet Stenersen AS for the six chemical tankers. This is reported to be first and largest chemical tanker order received by any shipyard in the country. The dimensions of the ships will be 150 m by length and approximately 23 m by beam. The contract also includes option agreement for six additional vessels. The first ship will be delivered within 33 months.

References

References

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