INS Betwa re-powering and a normal refit of the frigate will be carried out by Cochin Shipyard Limited under a Rs 498.58 crore contract the Ministry of Defence signed on Wednesday. The contract was signed in New Delhi in the presence of Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh, according to a release from the Ministry of Defence.

The Kochi yard will strip out the ship's steam propulsion and fit diesel engines in its place.

Steam propulsion on INS Betwa to be replaced with diesel engines

According to the ministry, the frigate will undergo a major propulsion system transformation under the contract. Its existing steam based plant will be removed and a diesel engine based system installed. The refit will also upgrade the ship's combat capability through a modernised weapon suite, which the ministry said would add to its operational effectiveness. The release does not list the engines or the weapons to be fitted, which is usual for refit contracts at the signing stage.

Betwa is a Brahmaputra class guided missile frigate. Built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers in Kolkata, she was commissioned in July 2004 and serves with the Western Fleet.

The ship has been through a long repair once before. In December 2016 she tipped over while being undocked at the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai during an earlier refit, and was salvaged, repaired and returned to service.

INS Betwa re-powering follows the INS Beas contract of 2023

Betwa is the second ship of her class to be moved from steam to diesel. The first was INS Beas. The ministry signed a Rs 313.42 crore contract with Cochin Shipyard for the mid life upgrade and re-powering of INS Beas in October 2023, describing it then as the maiden re-powering project of its kind and setting 2026 for her return to the fleet with an upgraded weapon suite.

That project was expected to involve more than 50 MSMEs and around 3,500 personnel.

Three frigates in the Brahmaputra class

The class has three ships, INS Brahmaputra, INS Betwa and INS Beas, all built at Kolkata and inducted between 2000 and 2005. With two of the three now contracted for diesel propulsion, the shift away from steam on these frigates is moving from a single trial project to a class level programme.

More than 50 MSMEs expected on the Betwa project

The ministry said the work would further strengthen indigenous capability in ship repair and maintenance, especially in complex propulsion changes and the modernisation of naval platforms. More than 50 MSMEs are expected to be involved, generating employment across Indian shipbuilding and ancillary industries.

It described the project as a boost to the government's Aatmanirbhar Bharat and Make in India vision, and to the country's own naval ship repair base.

Cochin Shipyard adds a second frigate refit to its naval work

The INS Betwa re-powering contract adds to a full naval order book at the Kochi yard. Cochin Shipyard is building eight Mahe class anti submarine warfare shallow water craft for the Indian Navy, the third of which was commissioned as INS Mangrol in Mumbai on 12 October.

Construction of the second of six Next Generation Missile Vessels also began at the yard in September, when steel was cut for yard number BY 532.