India takes a step forward in its box building ambitions as its Minister for Ports unveils first container built to ISO standards for global trade for Maersk Line.
For several years now, going back to the Covid Pandemic, the Indian government and its Ministry for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, have been working on a plan to bring container manufacturing at scale to India. Maersk got onboard in February 2025, when Robert Maersk Uggla, Chairman of the Maersk Supervisory Board, met India’s Honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi. At this meeting “the Prime Minister urged Maersk to actively support the development of world-class shipping container manufacturing in India,” Maersk said.
The centrepiece of India’s plan to compete with China’s container manufacturing industry is its Container Manufacturing Assistance Scheme (CMAS), which was announced in the Union Budget 2026-27. The CMAS has not been fully finalised, but the budget sets aside 10,000 crore rupees (around US$1.19 billion) to support domestic manufacturing of 1m TEU of shipping containers over five years.
Going global
India has a domestic container manufacturing industry, but it currently operates at a much lower scale, and most of its output is domestic containers for the Container Corporation of India (CONCOR). It its announcement Maersk stressed that the first unit it has received is an “export-import (EXIM) shipping container manufactured in India” that is built to ISO standards.
The inaugural unit was unveiled at the Maersk and Container Corporation of India (CONCOR) joint-venture Inland Container Depot at Dadri, Uttar Pradesh, in the presence of the Honourable Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Shri Sarbananda Sonowal.
“I am really proud of what we have achieved, from a shared vision through execution to the unveiling of the container today. We have shared our global standards, deployed the best technical minds, and collaborated with Indian manufacturers and the Ministry to make this happen. It is proof that India’s manufacturing ecosystem is getting ready for global demand. With the right investments in production facilities and a supporting ecosystem, we are confident the industry will get there,” said Ahmed Hassan Senior Vice President, A.P. Moller
“India has long been a nation of traders and seafarers. Today, we take a proud step forward as a manufacturer of containers, with international shipping lines procuring them from our country, said Shri Sarbananda Sonowal, Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways. “The first made-in-India Maersk container is a testament to what is possible when global companies believe in India’s potential. This is Atmanirbhar Bharat in action, and I am delighted that Maersk has chosen to lead from the front.”
ISO standards
The container was manufactured by the DCM Shriram Group at its facility in Dadri, Uttar Pradesh as part of an initial order for 1,000 containers. Maersk emphasised that every container in its fleet must comply with “ISO structural and dimensional specifications, the International Convention for Safe Containers (CSC), and Maersk’s elevated quality requirements. Structural prototype testing in accordance with ISO 1496, including stacking, lifting, racking, floor strength tests, and weatherproofing validation, is conducted under the oversight of a classification society and witnessed by Maersk representatives. The first India-manufactured container has passed all these tests, earning full CSC safety approval.”
Maersk’s wholly owned subsidiary Maersk Container Industry (MCI) no longer manufactures dry boxes, but Maersk has a wealth of technical knowledge on both container manufacturing and operating. “Throughout the development phase, Maersk shared this global technical knowledge freely with its Indian manufacturing partner, and DCM Shriram Group responded with commitment and capability. The result is a container that meets Maersk’s global standards,’ Maersk said.
The bigger question is whether and to what extend domestic manufacturers like DCM can compete with Chinese giants like CIMC. Maersk said the “Production Linked Incentive” in the government budget “has created the conditions for Indian containers to compete on a global scale. The framework reflects the kind of government-industry partnership that turns strategic intent into commercial reality and is a significant step forward under India’s Maritime Vision 2030 and the Atmanirbhar Bharat programme.”
Maersk added that the first container is the “foundation for a long-term supply relationship that will grow in scale as Indian manufacturers consistently demonstrate they can meet global quality standards at competitive costs.”
