India establishes dedicated maritime finance corporation to boost innovation

July 4, 2025, by Sara Kosmajac

India’s Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways (MoPSW) has officially inaugurated the Sagarmala Finance Corporation Limited (SMFCL), the country’s first non-banking financial company (NBFC) in the maritime sector.

Initially envisaged to be named Sagarmala Development Company Limited, SMFCL is anticipated to play a ‘significant’ role in India’s maritime infrastructure development, in line with the Amrit Kaal Vision 2047. This roadmap outlines the country’s ambition of becoming a developed nation by its centenary of independence through targeted investments in infrastructure, sustainability, and economic resilience.

According to MoPSW, the corporation has been registered with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) as of June 19, 2025. With this ‘milestone’, SMFCL is set to provide what is described as “a more focused and accessible” financial ecosystem for India’s maritime growth, enabling projects that contribute to sustainable development, innovation, and national logistics efficiency.

Speaking about this development, Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal elaborated further: “The registration of Sagarmala Finance Corporation Limited as an NBFC is a major milestone in India’s maritime journey. SMFCL will bridge crucial financing gaps and offer sector-specific financial solutions, empowering ports, MSMEs, startups, and institutions. It has fulfilled a long-standing demand of the maritime industry in the country.”

As disclosed, in its expanded mandate, SMFCL is to offer support to strategic sectors like shipbuilding, renewable energy, maritime education and cruise tourism.

“With SMFCL now functioning as a dedicated NBFC, we’re creating a focused financial ecosystem to accelerate maritime growth. This will unlock opportunities for innovation, investment, and inclusive development across the sector,” Union Minister of State for MoPSW, Shantanu Thakur, added.

Against the backdrop of this development, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways also launched the SAGAR SETU platform, which aims to ‘boost’ operational efficiency, bring in productivity and ease of doing business (EODB), thus breathing new life into India’s logistics and maritime ecosystem.

Inaugurated on June 26, the platform was reportedly designed to reduce processing times for ship and cargo documentation and promote paperless logistics. It is understood that the platform connects over 80 ports.

India has ramped up efforts to rejuvenate its maritime industry in recent times. In March this year, the country’s government announced it would pour $23.8 billion into positioning India as a ‘leading’ shipbuilding (and maritime) nation. As part of the plan, MoPSW elaborated that four million gross registered tonnage (GRT) in shipbuilding capacity were planned to be developed.

At the time, the Ministry also unveiled the Green Tug Transition Program (GTTP), which aims to minimize emissions by transitioning to 50% of zero-emission tug operations by 2030 and fully green operations by 2047.

View on Offshore-energy.

In February, the government also presented a long-term financing plan entailing a staggering $2.9 billion, which would go toward the establishment of a maritime development fund (MDF), primarily intended for new ship acquisitions, but also new green shipping initiatives and modernizing the old and building new ports, among other endeavors.