MMBAI (Bloomberg) — Shipping Corp. of India Ltd., the country's largest sea carrier, said it will postpone new orders for vessels worth about $1 billion to the next fiscal year as the global financial crisis chokes access to credit.

The Mumbai-based carrier had planned to place orders for as many as eight vessels in the fiscal year ending March 31, Chairman S. Hajara said yesterday. Local and foreign banks are unwilling to give loans to shipping lines, he said.

Indian shipping companies have sought financial assistance from the government as the credit crunch delays fleet-expansion plans. India's shipping ministry has proposed an assistance of 100 billion rupees ($1.9 billion) to the carriers, A.P.V.N. Sarma, the top official in the ministry, said.

"The biggest challenge for the shipping industry in India is how to generate loans," Hajara said. "Bank loans have always been the main source of financing."

The state-owned carrier had plans to borrow $1.3 billion to buy more vessels and increase capacity from about five million deadweight tons because of rising trade in the country, Hajara said in May. Shipping Corp. aims to double the tonnage by the end of 2014 as it adds 40 vessels, he said at the time.

The shipping ministry's aid plan is being considered by India's finance ministry, Sarma said, without specifying a timeframe for its approval.