Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders (MDL), a state-run shipbuilder for the Indian Navy and Coast Guard, has received clearance from the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA) to set up a floating dry dock with a launching facility at Nhava, off Mumbai coast.

Established in 1960, MDL employs over 6,000 skilled workers directly and many more indirectly. Currently, it is building P17, P15A, and P15B class warships, six Scorpene-class submarines, and has orders for 31 defence vessels. It also plans to construct landing helicopter deck ships, and aircraft carriers.

The proposed dock will consist of six blocks, being fabricated in Bharuch, Gujarat, and transported for assembly into a 180-mtrs. floating dock, covering 13,585 sq. mtrs.. This will address the lack of land-based shipbuilding infrastructure. Temporary assembly facilities will be set up on unused Nhava yard land without mangroves and dismantled post-launch in March 2026.

The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) found the location suitable, with minimal ecological impact and ideal tidal conditions for operations via the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority navigation channel.