Dredging Corp at 20% UC
Dredging Corporation of India Ltd (DCIL) hit a 20 percent upper circuit at Rs. 889.35 on Monday, making it one of the top gainers on the BSE, after the PSU announced it had signed 22 Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) valued at Rs. 17,645 crore with 16 organisations during India Maritime Week 2025 held in Mumbai.
The stock opened at Rs. 780.05 and hit its upper band of Rs. 888.95, with a VWAP of Rs. 845.71. Market capitalisation stood at Rs. 2,489 crore.
The MoUs were signed with several major and promoter ports, including Visakhapatnam, Paradip, Jawaharlal Nehru, Deendayal, Cochin, Chennai, and Mumbai, for dredging and maintenance contracts spanning the next two to five years. DCIL also entered agreements with Cochin Shipyard for dredger construction, Bharat Earth Movers Ltd (BEML) for indigenous spare parts under the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative, and NMDC Abu Dhabi for forming a joint venture aimed at improving operational efficiency and global competitiveness.
The rally follows Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s announcement last week of a Rs. 4,000 crore investment for DCIL’s fleet modernisation and capacity enhancement programme, part of the government’s effort to strengthen India’s dredging infrastructure and port connectivity. The funds will be used for the construction of 11 new dredgers, upgradation of the existing fleet, automation, and skill development.
The company's current fleet of 10 Trailer Suction Hopper Dredgers (TSHDs), with a combined hopper capacity of around 60,000 cubic metres, handles 50–60 million cubic metres of dredging annually, which is about 55% of India’s total dredging volume. The addition of new vessels is expected to boost throughput capacity and reinforce market leadership in domestic port maintenance and reclamation projects.
Analysts noted that the policy backing and long-term visibility from the MoUs strengthen the PSU’s earnings outlook over the medium term. The counter, which has nearly doubled in 2025 so far, remains closely watched as a key beneficiary of the government’s infrastructure-modernisation push across coastal logistics and maritime connectivity.