Fleet Procurement

New Mangalore awards 15-year battery-electric tug charter

Published 19 July 2026 Updated 3 August 2026 Publisher IMWO Region Asia Pacific Confidence Confirmed
Existing harbour tug inside New Mangalore Port during the port authority's 2023 National Maritime Day event

New Mangalore Port Authority; existing harbour-tug context, not the awarded battery-electric tug

New Mangalore Port Authority has awarded a 15-year charter for a new 60-tonne battery-electric tug to Underwater Services Company Limited in consortium with J M Baxi Greenship Private Limited. The work order is worth INR 3.150425 billion excluding GST; the tug is due within 24 months of the 30 June 2026 award.

Published scope and current milestone

NMPA's June 2026 award statement controls the successful consortium, INR 3.150425 billion award value excluding GST, 30 June work order and 15-year term. The tender controls the 60-tonne bollard-pull requirement, GTTP Phase I baseline, 24-month vessel-delivery period, shore-charging split and monitoring integration. The clarification adds the river-sea, aft-towing, rescue-boat and oil-spill-response configuration. Samson and J M Baxi pages support corporate capability context only; they do not identify the tug's shipyard or supply chain. Current review found no official construction, trials, delivery, acceptance or service-start milestone. The photograph shows an existing tug in New Mangalore Port and is used only for harbour context.

Contract packaging and mobilisation implications

The award settles the price and contracting party, but the harder delivery interfaces are still open. The contractor must bring a new Indian-built GTTP Phase I tug through design, construction and trials, connect it to port-provided shore charging, prove the monitoring-system interface and obtain port acceptance before the operating term starts. NMPA's clarification also fixes operational details that affect design and acceptance: river-sea duties, aft towing gear, rescue-boat handling and oil-spill-response equipment.

Evidence conclusion

Award, mobilisation and acceptance evidence

This is an awarded service contract, not an operating tug. Samson's official material supports Underwater Services Company Limited's commercial-diving, salvage and SPM O&M background, while J M Baxi describes group capability in electric and hybrid tugs. Those are contractor-capability signals, not proof of the shipyard, battery supplier, electrical integrator or vessel assignment. Status should move only after named delivery parties, class and GTTP acceptance, construction milestones, charging integration, trials, delivery survey, port acceptance and on-hire performance are documented. NMPA's INR 3.67093 billion tender estimate is not the contract price, and the award does not establish realised emissions or fuel savings.

Outstanding evidence

  • Executed agreement and named shipyard
  • Class, GTTP and battery-system design acceptance
  • Arrangement and acceptance of towing, rescue-boat and oil-spill-response equipment
  • Construction and principal-equipment milestones
  • Shore-charging capacity and vessel-side connection closure
  • Port monitoring-system integration and data acceptance
  • Bollard-pull, endurance, hybrid-mode and safety trials
  • Delivery survey, port acceptance and charter commencement
  • Availability, charging time and service reliability after on-hire

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