RoFR licensing a giant step for shipyards, says Mandaviya
In a move to build the local shipbuilding industry, the Shipping Ministry has reviewed the ROFR (Right of First Refusal) licensing conditions for chartering of vessels and Ships through the tender process for all types of requirements.
“Ministry of Shipping is working with a focused approach to promote shipbuilding in India. The revision of RoFR licensing conditions is a giant step towards AatmaNirbhar Shipping,” said the Minister of State Mansukh Mandaviya announcing the newly revised condition on 22 Oct 2020.
The move will promote ‘Make in India’ initiatives through self-reliance and will give a strategic boost to domestic shipyards, contributing towards the long-term economic growth of India, he said.
The RoFR promotes ships built in India, giving priority in chartering of Indian-origin, flagged and owned vessels.
The Right of First Refusal (RoFR) would be exerted in the following manner:
Indian built, Indian flagged and Indian owned
Foreign built, Indian flagged and Indian owned
Indian built, foreign-flagged and foreign-owned
Provided that:
All vessels flying the flag of India (i.e. registered in India) up to the date of issue of new circular by the Director General of Shipping shall be deemed to be Indian built vessels and will fall in category (i) above and
Further, the Ministry has made provision for long-term subsidy for shipbuilding activities under the shipbuilding financial assistance policy (2016-2026). The Ministry has already disbursed an amount of Rs.61.05 crores till date under this policy.
It is an endeavour of the Government to further incentivise shipbuilding by providing additional market access and business support to ships built in India.
The revised guidelines will give a boost to the domestic shipbuilding and shipping industries, said the Ministry, adding that it will encourage the domestic shipping industry to support the domestic shipping industry. #makeinIndia #manufacturing #shipping #shipyards #subsidies /fiinews.com
