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Adani, Essar and DP World in race to develop Rs 2,500-crore ports

The tenders of VO Chidambaranar Port Trust and Paradip Port have received interest from Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone, Dubai government-owned DP World, Essar, and others

PORTS, exports, imports, trade, shipping, ships, economy
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Shine JacobAditi Divekar Chennai/Mumbai
3 min read Last Updated : Aug 07 2021 | 6:05 AM IST
The government’s Rs 2,500-crore plan, announced in the Union Budget, to enlist private players to develop seven operational cargo berths at state-owned ports has been welcomed by the industry.
 
The tenders of VO Chidambaranar Port Trust (VOC) and Paradip Port have received interest from industry majors like Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ), the Dubai government-owned DP World, Essar, J M Baxi Group, and APM Terminals Management BV.
 
“For berth No 9, we are planning a bulk cargo terminal in a public-private partnership (PPP) model at an investment of over Rs 400 crore. At the expression of interest stage, we have seen interest from half-a-dozen players. We are getting interest from major players like Adani, DP World, Essar and Baxi Group,” said a source aware of the developments at VOC (formerly Tuticorin Port Trust).
 
Another source said a majority of private players, including Essar, are in the race to develop the South Quay Berth (SQB) at Paradip Port Trust for around Rs 75 crore. VOC is also planning to develop the North Cargo Berth-III that may see investment of around Rs 420 crore, on PPP mode.
 
An Essar official confirmed that the company is interested in Chidam­baranar and Paradip projects. The Centre’s plan, announced by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Budget, envisages offering seven projects worth Rs 2,000 crore to private players. As part of this policy push, the Parliament had in February passed the Major Port Authorities Act, 2021, which shifts towards an authority model of governance, and away from the trustee model.
 
Projects in the offing
 
The largest of the seven projects announced by Sitharaman is at Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT), which plans to privatise its container terminal at an investment of around Rs 860 crore. According to media reports, the port trust is likely to come out with a global tender, in which APSEZ, DP World, and APM Terminals Management BV are likely to participate. DP World and APM already operate terminals in JNPT. The port will also see private participation for developing a de­di­cated berth to handle ships that ply only on local routes at an outlay of Rs 170 crore.
 
Other major ports that may see private participation include Deendayal Port Trust in Kandla, Gujarat, for developing Berth No 14 at an investment of Rs 300 crore and the West Quay Berths 7 and 8 at Visakhapatnam Port Trust (Rs 288 crore).
 
There are 12 ports under the central government’s control: JNPT Mumbai, Deendayal (erstwhile Kandla), Mormugao, Chennai, Kamarajar (earlier Ennore), VOC, New Mangalore, Cochin, Paradip, Kolkata (including Haldia), and Visakhapatnam.


Topics :shipping portsAdani Ports and Special Economic ZoneEssarDP World