Knowledge Marine & Engineering Works (KMEW) has secured a Rs 303.17 crore dredging order from the New Mangalore Port Authority, in what the company described as its largest-ever dredging contract. The order covers maintenance dredging across key operational areas of the port and will require the deployment of a suitable Trailing Suction Hopper Dredger (TSHD) along with specialised equipment.
KMEW said in a statement that it emerged as the lowest bidder for the contract. Its bid was approximately 10.16 per cent below the bid submitted by competitors, according to the company. The statement, issued on Saturday, identified the contract value as Rs 303.17 crore.
The project covers maintenance dredging in the port’s outer approach channel, lagoon, dock areas and turning circle. It also includes dredging at designated berth faces and pump-house areas. These locations form part of the areas that must be maintained for the port’s operating requirements, although KMEW’s statement did not provide details of the contract period or a project completion deadline.
The work will involve a Trailing Suction Hopper Dredger, a vessel used for collecting and transporting dredged material, as well as specialised equipment for areas where berth-face and pump-house dredging is required. The company did not disclose the name, capacity or deployment schedule of the dredger in the statement available for this report.
The order places the focus on maintenance rather than the construction of a new port facility. Maintenance dredging is carried out across navigation and operational zones identified in a port’s working area. In this case, the listed scope extends from the outer approach channel to internal dock areas, turning space, berth faces and pump-house locations.
KMEW’s statement gives the contract a significance beyond its value for the company because the work spans multiple parts of the New Mangalore Port Authority’s operating area. The inclusion of the outer approach channel and turning circle indicates that the contract is not limited to a single berth or isolated facility. However, the supplied announcement does not state whether the dredging will be conducted continuously, in phases or according to a seasonal operating plan.
The bidding detail also establishes how KMEW won the order. The company said it was the lowest bidder, with its bid about 10.16 per cent below the competing bid. The statement did not name the other bidders or disclose the full tender comparison, so the available information does not establish how many companies participated in the process or the precise value of the next-lowest bid.
The New Mangalore Port dredging order is therefore presently defined by three confirmed elements: its Rs 303.17 crore value, its maintenance-dredging scope and the equipment requirement involving a TSHD and specialised dredging machinery. KMEW’s announcement did not specify the mobilisation date, execution timeline or the next contractual milestone.
