Visakhapatnam port handled about 1.6 million tonnes of additional cargo during the financial year 2009-10 as compared with the last fiscal. The port handled about 65.5 million tonnes of cargo as against 63.9 million tonnes in the preceding year.
However, it lost about 6 million tonnes of coking and thermal coal and iron ore to Gangavaram port, and over 2 million tonne of petroleum products transshipment cargo to Paradip port.
During 2009-10, the port handled 18.09 million tonnes of iron ore, 18.35 million tonne of petroleum products, 375,000 tonnes of thermal coal, 7.7 million tonnes of coking and steam coal and 1.7 million tonnes of other cargo, KSD Dattu Raju, traffic manager, Vizag port, told Business Standard.
“New clients like Jindal Steel and Bhushan Steel helped increase our coking and thermal coal imports by about 720,000 tonnes and some other cargos,” he said.