Chennai, May 19 (IANS): Private ship builder Tebma Shipyards Ltd is mulling to build small war vessels for Indian defence needs, said a top company official.

Speaking to IANS here on Tuesday, its CEO N.Ramanathan said: "We have the capability to make patrol vessels and hence mulling to venture into that segment which has good potential."

The Rs.175 crore turnover Tebma builds dredgers, tugs, offshore support vessels, floating cranes and pilot launches.

The company recently supplied Indian Navy a dredger built by it with 90 percent local content.

"The order value was around Rs.30 crore," Ramanathan said.

Interestingly the dredger was the first one to be owned by the Indian Navy.

The self-propelled, grab-hopper dredger has a capacity to hold 300 cubic metres of dredged material.

The company's 50th dredger was built at Tebma's facility at Malpe in Karnataka, under Indian Register Classification Rules meeting applicable naval standards.

According to Ramanathan, the company has delivered more than 150 vessels and is also a prominent player in offshore shipbuilding.

He said with the government focussed on coastal shipping, the prospects for the sector are bright.