Boatbuilding exports worth over Rs.500 mn
The Board of Investment of Sri Lanka has played an important part in promoting boat building in its wide range of applications in the leisure, tourism, sport, exploration, transport, fisheries, and even surveillance sectors. The boatbuilding exports are worth over Rs.500 million annually while the biggest manufacturer Neil Marine exports are worth over Rs.250 million.
Sri Lanka has a well developed boatbuilding industry comprised of a number of reputed companies engaged in the construction of a variety boat types. This capacity has become a major export sector offering promising potential for growth as a result of the future importance that will be accorded to economic sectors such as fisheries, tourism and perhaps oil exploration.
Among the companies that operate under the BOI regime, are established names such as Neil Fernando and Co. (Pvt) Ltd. established 4 decades ago, is reputed for the quality and durability of its fiberglass boats.
Initially Neil Marine were catering for the local fisheries sector but have now exported their boats to foreign markets such the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands and Norway. Furthermore, the company has made inroads into new markets like the Maldives, the Seychelles, Persian Gulf Nations, and some African states.
To date Neil Marine has built over 38,000 boats of different types. These include fisheries research vessels, speed cruisers, luxury and surveillance crafts and fast attack craft that are used by Sri Lankan forces. Neil marine also recently secured an order to supply the Pakistani Navy with fibreglass surveillance craft. Recently Neil Marine manufactured totally enclosed lifeboats that can be used by companies engaged in oil exploration.
Another well-known BOI company that manufactures boats is Dhanusha Marine Lanka exports that also build fiberglass boats to meet the requirements of international and domestic markets. Their boats are exported to India, the Maldives, the Netherlands, Norway and Germany. Many of the boats they build are leisure crafts, speedboats, fishing boats and powerboats.
The company’s exports to the Maldives include essentially leisure boats while in Germany the demand is mainly for fishing and leisure boats.
Dhanusha Marine is expanding their business to new markets such as Bangladesh. The company obtains technical management services from organizations in the Netherlands to maintain quality to an international standard. Lloyds certify the raw materials they use in manufacture. Currently Dhanusha are looking for a joint venture partner.
In many parts of the world, sailing is a popular sport and leisure activity. Sailing is a highly specialised sporting activity, which ranges from small craft to highly advanced and complex yachts. One interesting and popular class of sailing boats is the catamaran sailboat, a sporting craft that can be supported by one or two motors.
One Sri Lankan company that builds these catamarans and operates under the BOI regime is the Baramundi Boatyard (pvt) Ltd. This enterprise is a 100% export orientated company located at the BOI’s Koggala Export Processing Zone.
In addition to building catamarans, Barramundi Boatyards also make mono hull sailing vessels and motor ships. The most important vessels they build are the Brazapi 46 that is a catamaran sailing boat and the Roland 45, a catamaran motorboat.
The manufacturing process includes initially setting up a plug, then building the boat moulds. In the first stage a wooden skeleton is made and then layers of laminated Epoxy resin and glass fiber are placed to cover this frame.
Barramundi Boatyards (pvt) Ltd began in July 2008 building 46ft leisure catamarans and 45ft fishing catamarans. The company is in collaboration with French, Dutch and Belgian partners who send shipments of materials needed for this advanced manufacturing process.
A newcomer to boat manufacturing in Sri Lanka is Solas Marine Services Ltd that recently entered into an agreement with the BOI to build boats and yachts. Solas Marine Services Ltd. is based in Dubai and specialises in the manufacture of lifesaving equipment, survival equipment, fire and gas detection, navigation and communications and other areas.
These products will be built at their manufacturing plant in Wattala that will employ 60 workers. The types of boats that will be built will include fishing boats, luxury boats, inter-island service boats, crew boats, leisure crafts and luxury yachts.
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