I almost fell off the chair when I saw this. A month ago I was joking with a Tata Board member as how it was that Tata was not standing in queue for shipbuilding subsidies where L&T had already made a nice meal ticket of the subsidy packages announced.
His reply was unexpected.
How could we have missed this ?
Are you sure this is a 50,000 cr package?
It was meant to be a joke.
I didn’t really believe they would actually do this. But they seem to stoop below all limits. With zero domain experts, no money and a rapidly failing leadership. I can see why they want to do it. But I wonder why ECHT agreed to let them use their name. They shouldn’t become collateral damage in the boardroom tussle at Tata. I really think they are a good company and deserve better.
Well ai answered that it was. And today I see this announcement
I know ECHT very well. We worked with them to build sustainable electric boats. Our fund addresses all parts of the shipbuilding jigsaw. From university to nuclear reactors. I was happy to avail of ECHT hospitality during the Mahakumbh in 2025. And one of Distinguished Fellows is an investor in ECHT and speaks very well of ECHT VENTURES and their promoter group. They are an early mover in the space and a great startup with an enthusiastic team of marine engineers.
I was particularly impressed by the team at Prayagraj. And the platoon of self manufactured boats. As well as the floating platform erected to act as temporary jetties.
The problem is not ECHT but the Tatas. They found a msme domain expert in ECHt and queued up with a begging bowl to get subsidy.
The business model is not to make or to sell ships. But to collect subsidy.
And that somehow is not expected of the Tatas. There is something called core competency. And there is no point not being in the top three of all the businesses that you are in.
The only business that they seem to have a comparative advantage in is salt. Everything else seems like a subsidy racket.