India deepens Indian Ocean footprint as MDL acquires Colombo Dockyard stake
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "India deepens Indian Ocean footprint as MDL acquires Colombo Dockyard stake")
Representative Photo Photograph: (AFP)
The acquisition is widely seen as a strategic countermove to China's growing maritime footprint in Sri Lanka.
Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL), India's state-owned defence shipbuilder under the Ministry of Defence, has acquired a controlling 51% stake in Colombo Dockyard PLC (CDPLC), Sri Lanka's largest shipyard, for $26.8 millionn on Saturday (April 11), marking its first international acquisition.
The deal makes CDPLC a subsidiary of MDL and is being positioned as a key step under India's Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047. The board of CDPLC has been reconstituted under MDL leadership, with MDL chief Capt Jagmohan (Retd) appointed Non-Executive Chairman effective April 7, 2026.
MDL's backing has already yielded commercial results. In November 2025, CDPLC secured the largest contract in its 52-year history, a $150 million deal with France's Orange Marine for the construction of two advanced cable laying and repair vessels, scheduled for delivery in 2028 and 2029. The keel of the first vessel was laid on April 1, 2026.
On the bilateral front, CDPLC signed an MoU with the Dredging Corporation of India (DCI) on April 7, establishing it as DCI's preferred drydocking and repair partner. MDL is also in active discussions with the Shipping Corporation of India to route vessel repair and refit work to Colombo, further strengthening the India-Sri Lanka maritime corridor.
The acquisition is widely seen as a strategic countermove to China's growing maritime footprint in Sri Lanka. Beijing holds a 99-year lease over Hambantota Port and has regularly docked naval vessels in Colombo, raising alarm in New Delhi. MDL's entry into Colombo Dockyard is as much a geopolitical signal as it is a business decision.
