Engineering major Larsen & Toubro on Tuesday unveiled its intention to set up a shipbuilding yard for small vessels, apart from a slew of expansion plans.

“We may raise between $150-200 million by April 2007 for the expansion,” chief financial officer Y M Deosthalee told DNA Money.

He said the shipyard would accommodate small vessels. “We are looking for an alternative coastal facility apart from the existing one at Hazira,” he said. The location is likely to be finalised in the next couple of weeks.

Apart from being on the lookout for acquisitions in the Middle East, the company wants to also raise the number of readymix cement plants in India to 150 from the current 60 in about 3 years, Deosthalee said.

L&T had set up a Rs 58 crore concrete-mix plant in Dubai on February 5.

In the Middle East, L&T may also look out for a firm that specialises in water engineering.

“The acquisition route may be followed but only for bridging the competency gap,” Deosthalee said.