Karachi Shipyard
Encyclopedia
The Karachi Shipyard & Engineering Works Limited (KSEW), is Situated at West Wharf in Karachi
, Sindh
, Pakistan
.
Karachi Shipyard is the oldest Heavy Engineering Works of Pakistan
which is catering for its Ship Building, Ship Repairing, Submarine/Warship Construction and Heavy/General Engineering requirements.
KSEW was established in early 1950's as a project of PIDC. It was incorporated as a public limited company in 1957. The shipyard spread over an area of 29 hectares (71 acres). KSEW has a large Ship Building Hall, three Ship Building Berths, two Dry Docks, three Foundries (Iron, Steel & Non-Ferrous), Fabrication Shops, one machine shop and other supporting facilities like Carpentry, Pipe Fitting and Light Steel Fabrication Shop. KSEW is working as an autonomous commercial organization under the Ministry of Defence, Government of Pakistan
.
Karachi Shipyard is the only shipbuilding company in Pakistan. It has built numerous cargo ships, tugboat
s and support vessels, naval vessels and submarine
s.
The third Agosta 90B submarine, PNS Hamza, was constructed with the newly developed MESMA air-independent propulsion
unit, while the first two (PNS Khalid and PNS Saad) will be retro-fitted during their next overhauls with a "plug" containing a MESMA AIP unit. The submarine's hull will be cut and the plug inserted. The second MESMA unit was shipped in June 2011.
The next submarine project will see KSEW jointly involved with Chinese company CSOC (China Shipbuilding & Offshore International Co. Ltd.) in the design and construction of six submarines equipped with air-independent propulsion (AIP). These will be designed to Pakistani specifications and four will be built at a CSOC shipyard in China, while two will be constructed by KSEW. It is believed that little upgrading of facilities is required because much of the current infrastructure meets the requirements. The preliminary negotiations were reported to be completed in March 2011. It was earlier believed that the project would involve China's Type-041 Yuan class submarine, which had been mentioned by Admiral Noman Bashir, Chief of Naval Staff, several times since 2009.
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
, Sindh
Sindh
Sindh historically referred to as Ba'ab-ul-Islam , is one of the four provinces of Pakistan and historically is home to the Sindhi people. It is also locally known as the "Mehran". Though Muslims form the largest religious group in Sindh, a good number of Christians, Zoroastrians and Hindus can...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
.
Karachi Shipyard is the oldest Heavy Engineering Works of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
which is catering for its Ship Building, Ship Repairing, Submarine/Warship Construction and Heavy/General Engineering requirements.
KSEW was established in early 1950's as a project of PIDC. It was incorporated as a public limited company in 1957. The shipyard spread over an area of 29 hectares (71 acres). KSEW has a large Ship Building Hall, three Ship Building Berths, two Dry Docks, three Foundries (Iron, Steel & Non-Ferrous), Fabrication Shops, one machine shop and other supporting facilities like Carpentry, Pipe Fitting and Light Steel Fabrication Shop. KSEW is working as an autonomous commercial organization under the Ministry of Defence, Government of Pakistan
Government of Pakistan
The Government of Pakistan is a federal parliamentary system, with an indirectly-elected President as the Head of State and Commander in Chief of the Pakistani Armed Forces, and an indirectly-elected Prime Minister as the Head of Government. The President’s appointment and term are...
.
Karachi Shipyard is the only shipbuilding company in Pakistan. It has built numerous cargo ships, tugboat
Tugboat
A tugboat is a boat that maneuvers vessels by pushing or towing them. Tugs move vessels that either should not move themselves, such as ships in a crowded harbor or a narrow canal,or those that cannot move by themselves, such as barges, disabled ships, or oil platforms. Tugboats are powerful for...
s and support vessels, naval vessels and submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
s.
Submarine construction
In the 1990s KSEW received technology from France for building the Agosta 90B Khalid class submarine. The technology was mostly related to construction of the pressure hull and out-fitting of the submarine. Drawings, computer aided design tools and more than 20,000 technical documents from France were transferred. Training programs for 300 engineers and technicians took place in France and another 600 personnel were trained in Pakistan. In 1995, surveys and upgrades to naval dockyard infrastructure were carried out by French personnel which included a section building hall, combined outfitting workshop, pipe-bending workshop, hull fabrication workshop, grit blasting and painting facility, dock lift system and a pickling and etching plant.The third Agosta 90B submarine, PNS Hamza, was constructed with the newly developed MESMA air-independent propulsion
Air-independent propulsion
Air-independent propulsion is a term that encompasses technologies which allow a submarine to operate without the need to surface or use a snorkel to access atmospheric oxygen. The term usually excludes the use of nuclear power, and describes augmenting or replacing the diesel-electric propulsion...
unit, while the first two (PNS Khalid and PNS Saad) will be retro-fitted during their next overhauls with a "plug" containing a MESMA AIP unit. The submarine's hull will be cut and the plug inserted. The second MESMA unit was shipped in June 2011.
The next submarine project will see KSEW jointly involved with Chinese company CSOC (China Shipbuilding & Offshore International Co. Ltd.) in the design and construction of six submarines equipped with air-independent propulsion (AIP). These will be designed to Pakistani specifications and four will be built at a CSOC shipyard in China, while two will be constructed by KSEW. It is believed that little upgrading of facilities is required because much of the current infrastructure meets the requirements. The preliminary negotiations were reported to be completed in March 2011. It was earlier believed that the project would involve China's Type-041 Yuan class submarine, which had been mentioned by Admiral Noman Bashir, Chief of Naval Staff, several times since 2009.
Merchant vessels
- Al-Abbas - first one to be built in 1967 for Muhammadi Steamship Company LimitedMuhammadi Steamship Company LimitedMuhammadi Steamship Company Limited was one of the oldest locally owned shipping companies in Pakistan until it was nationalised in the early 1970s.-History:...
.
Submarines
- Agosta 90B class submarineAgosta 90B class submarineThe Agosta class submarines are French diesel attack submarines used by Spain, Pakistan and formerly by France. The French Navy grouped this model of submarine in their most capable class as an océanique, meaning "ocean-going." A modernised version built for Pakistan, the Agosta 90B, has a crew of...
- Cosmos class MG110 mini-submarineCosmos class submarine-External links:*http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/pakistan/mg110.htm*http://www.armada.mil.co/index.php?idcategoria=542338*http://www.armada.mil.co/index.php?idcategoria=61195...