Shipping Corp. to spend about $600 mln for 15 vessels

State-run Shipping Corp. of India Ltd. will order for the first lot of 15 vessels, worth about $600 million, in the current quarter as part of its $1.4-billion plan to acquire 35 ships, a senior official said. As asia.news. reports, the ships would be delivered in the fiscal year to March 2010 and help the company cash in on expanding trade volumes, especially in energy transportation, Umesh C. Grover, director for technical and offshore services, told Reuters on Monday. Separately, Shipping Corp. would invest $10 million towards equity in the joint venture formed this year with textile firm Forbes Gokak Ltd. , Grover said adding the business plan for the venture was being finalised. The venture would buy four chemical tankers, each of which would have about 13,000 dead-weight tonnage capacity and cost $22-23 million.