An Indian logistics company has become a shipowner. Ashapura Shipping Group, Kandla has bought a 14-year-old handysize bulk carrier from Wilmar. The ship, formerly called Arawana, has been renamed Imperial Varalaxmi. No price has been revealed for the acquisition.

Ashapura Shipping, founded in the early 1990s, has tippers, excavators, cranes, and grabs, supporting large-scale bulk and break-bulk cargo handling, stevedoring, and project logistics across key industrial sectors, predominantly on India’s west coast. It has also chartered in vessels in the past.

Raja Gunti, the company’s CEO, said: “Owning is not about holding steel. It is about managing a revenue-generating asset with long-term earning potential. Every day at sea strengthens cash flow; every idle day erodes value. Our focus is maximising time-at-sea and protecting margins across market cycles.”

The company said it has plans to add more owned vessels.