India's Cochin Shipyard profit edges up on ship repair boom

India's Cochin Shipyard has reported a strong increase in revenue for the first quarter of the 2025-26 financial year, driven by a major surge in its ship repair business. However, a significant rise in operating costs meant that the top-line growth translated into only a modest increase in net profit compared to the same period last year.

For the three months ending 30 June, the state-owned enterprise posted revenue from operations of INR9.77 billion ($117 million), a substantial rise from the INR7.10 billion recorded in the first quarter of the previous financial year. Despite this, net profit for the period saw only a slight increase, growing to INR1.88 billion from INR1.81 billion in the prior-year quarter.

The muted profit growth was a result of a sharp increase in the company's outgoings. Total expenses for the quarter jumped to INR7.84 billion, up from INR5.48 billion in the same period last year.

The rise was primarily driven by subcontracting and other direct expenses, which more than doubled to INR2.37 billion. Depreciation and amortisation expenses also doubled to INR2.91 billion, which the company linked to the recent capitalisation of its new international ship repair facility and new dry dock projects.

A breakdown of the company's performance by segment reveals a stark contrast between its two main divisions. The overall revenue growth was fuelled entirely by the ship repair division, which saw its revenue surge to INR6.30 billion from INR2.45 billion. In contrast, the shipbuilding segment's revenue declined to INR3.48 billion from INR4.65 billion in the comparative quarter.