The Larsen and Toubro shipyard at Kattupalli, on the coast north of Ennore, is where parts of the Indian Navy’s 40,000-tonne fleet support ships are being built and where US Navy supply ships come for repairs. It is easy to confuse with Kattupalli Port next door, which L&T sold to Adani Ports in 2018. The two now run as separate businesses on the same stretch of shore.
Here is what each does, what the shipyard is cleared to handle, and what the expansion now being planned would change.
The shipyard in figures
A July 2025 report in Indian Infrastructure, based on L&T’s environmental filing, put the existing yard at 892.11 acres. Its environmental and coastal clearances date to 2009 and allow 25 new ships, 60 repairs and 50,000 tonnes of modular fabrication a year. The same filing said the yard was building around 15 new ships and repairing about 30 annually, well under those limits. Facilities include dry and wet berths and a warship design centre.
L&T’s shipbuilding arm says the yard was the first Indian shipyard to earn a five-star grade in the British Safety Council’s occupational health and safety audit, in April 2019.
What is being built for the Navy
In August 2023 the Navy signed a contract with Hindustan Shipyard Ltd (HSL) of Visakhapatnam for five fleet support ships. These are tankers and supply ships that carry fuel, water, ammunition and stores to warships at sea, and they can also be used for disaster relief. HSL subcontracted part of the construction of two of them to Kattupalli.
- On 11 December 2024, a steel-cutting ceremony for the second ship was held at the L&T yard, according to the Defence Ministry release on PIB. Each ship displaces 40,000 tonnes.
- In July 2025, News On AIR reported that the keel of the third fleet support ship was laid at the L&T shipyard in Kattupalli.
- Deliveries of the class are scheduled to begin in mid-2027.
The Defence Ministry says the fleet support ships use an Indian design and mostly Indian-made equipment. Construction is split between HSL in Visakhapatnam and the L&T yard, which is how the Navy hopes to meet the mid-2027 delivery start.
The US Navy connection
Kattupalli became the first Indian yard to repair a US Navy ship when the dry cargo ship USNS Charles Drew stayed there from 7 to 17 August 2022 for scheduled maintenance, including work on safety and crew living systems, according to the US Pacific Fleet. USNS Matthew Perry followed. In July 2023 the rescue and salvage ship USNS Salvor became the third, arriving after L&T and the US Navy signed a five-year Master Ship Repair Agreement, DT Next reported. The agreement lets US Navy vessels be repaired at the yard without a fresh qualification for each job.
Charles Drew is a Lewis and Clark-class dry cargo ship run by the US Military Sealift Command. The repair followed a statement at the April 2022 India-US 2+2 ministerial dialogue that the two sides intended to use Indian yards for such maintenance.
The expansion plan
L&T’s 2025 proposal put the investment at about ₹1,000 crore, with work planned over three years from October 2025. A July 2026 report in Maritime Gateway cited a figure of ₹1,100 crore and said the work needs fresh environmental and coastal clearances. Both reports say the expansion stays inside the existing land. Planned additions include:
- new fabrication and assembly shops, and paint and blasting facilities;
- warehouses and office space;
- residential buildings for staff and a skill-development centre;
- a greenbelt.
The aim is to bring actual output closer to the capacities cleared in 2009. For residents of Pulicat, Kattupalli and the fishing villages along the Ennore coast, the clearance stage is when public hearings and objections normally happen, so watch for notices from the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board and the coastal zone authority.
The port next door
Kattupalli Port began as an L&T project. In June 2018 Adani Ports and SEZ completed the purchase of 97% of Marine Infrastructure Developer Pvt Ltd, the company that runs it. At the time it had two berths on a 710-metre quay, capacity of 1.2 million TEUs a year and 322 acres of backup land, about 30 km north of Chennai. The port handles containers; the shipyard builds and repairs vessels. Jobs at one are not jobs at the other, which is worth knowing if you are applying.
Quick answers
Who owns the Kattupalli shipyard?
Larsen and Toubro. The neighbouring Kattupalli Port has been controlled by Adani Ports since June 2018.
What Navy ships are being built there?
Parts of two of the five 40,000-tonne fleet support ships ordered from Hindustan Shipyard in August 2023, with deliveries due from mid-2027.
Has the yard repaired US Navy ships?
Yes. USNS Charles Drew in August 2022 was the first; USNS Matthew Perry and USNS Salvor followed.
How big is the yard allowed to grow?
Its 2009 clearances allow 25 new builds, 60 repairs and 50,000 tonnes of modular fabrication a year.
Information checked against official sources on 18 October 2026. Fees, dates and rules can change; confirm on the linked official pages before acting.
Sources
- Steel cutting of second Fleet Support Ship at L&T Kattupalli, 11 December 2024 (PIB)
- Keel laid for third Fleet Support Ship at L&T shipyard (News On AIR)
- Indian port provides key maintenance capability for US Navy’s Military Sealift Command (US Pacific Fleet)
- L&T plans to invest Rs 10 billion in its Katupalli shipbuilding complex (Indian Infrastructure)
- L&T plans Kattupalli shipyard expansion (Maritime Gateway)
- American ship arrives at Kattupalli yard for repairs under US-India MSRA (DT Next)
- APSEZ completes acquisition of Kattupalli Port (Adani Ports)
