India and Chinese Shipbuilding: Strategic Implications for the Indian Ocean Region

Under its Professional Education Lecture (PEL) Series, the National Maritime Foundation hosted a presentation by Commodore Mohit Goel, NM, on “India and Chinese Shipbuilding: Trends, Challenges, and Strategic Implications.”

The lecture examined shipbuilding not merely as an industrial enterprise, but as a critical instrument of maritime statecraft. Beyond fleet expansion, shipbuilding enables enduring strategic relationships through platform transfers, refit and maintenance ecosystems, training pipelines, and lifecycle support frameworks that bind partner states over decades.

Comparing Indian and Chinese maritime-industrial systems, the presentation assessed how production scale, state-backed financing, industrial integration, and logistical outreach translate into influence across the Indian Ocean Region. Particular attention was paid to the ways in which infrastructure capacity and delivery timelines shape strategic credibility.

The discussion also highlighted areas where India’s cooperation-first and capacity-building model offers strategic opportunity. By emphasising transparent partnerships, skill development, and sustainable maritime capability enhancement, India can strengthen regional trust while reinforcing its role as a preferred security partner in the Indian Ocean.

The lecture reinforced the broader understanding that shipyards are not simply industrial facilities—they are long-term instruments of national power with far-reaching geopolitical implications.