India Steamship to Buy Tankers

India Steamship, a company of the K K Birla group managed out of Kolkata by C S Nopany, is planning for mega expansion, the Business Standard reported. The outfit, which is now a part of Chambal Fertilisers and Chemicals, would invest $206 million for doubling its fleet of tankers. Nopany said the company had already signed a MOU with a Greek company for acquiring a ship. India Steamship had three single hull tankers at present. Two tankers had a capacity of 96,000 ton each and the third had capacity of 60,000 ton. According to Nopany, majority of the proposed investment of over Rs 900 crore would be financed through borrowings. Nopany said that the company had signed a contract for delivery of two tankers with Ulsan-based Hyundai Heavy Industries of South Korea. These two ships would be delivered in the later half of 2008. Each new tanker would have a capacity of 105,000 ton. (Source: Business Standard)