Govt to invest Rs 10,000cr in five new ports

The shipping ministry plans to set up at least five deep-sea ports in the country during the Eleventh Five Year Plan period, with an expected investment of Rs 10,000 crore. The ministry would be issuing requests for proposal (RFPs) for appointing consultants for developing these ports.

These ports would be developed through the public-private partnership (PPP) mode. The plan comes close on the heels of the recent move of appointing a consultant for setting up a deep-sea port in West Bengal under PPP.

Though the plan of setting up five more deep-sea ports is at an early stage, ministry officials say that the government would control the connectivity aspect of the proposed ports.

In other words, in case there are plans to develop rail and road connectivity to these ports, then it would be done by the government.

Also, the physical structures like bridges would also be constructed by the government, sources said. Private companies would be given the task of developing and managing the berths and terminals of the proposed ports.

The government is planning these ports because currently none of the 12 major ports in the country have a draft (the depth of a vessel's keel below the surface, especially when loaded) of more than 12 metres.

The proposed deep-sea port in West Bengal as well as the other five ones would have draft of around 16 metres.

The West Bengal port would require an investment of around Rs 2,000 crore. Consultants including Sandwell Engineering, Scott Wilson Kirkpatrick and the UK-based CGR have reportedly responded to the RFP for the West Bengal port.

Once the consultant is finalised, it would be required to conduct a techno-economic feasibility study for constructing the deep-sea port. Also, the consultant would have to give at least three locations for the proposed port.

Sources say the consultant would be associated with the project right from the time of its inception: from the time of selecting the location for the port and preparation of the DPR to the commissioning of the port. After this, the consultant would have to supervise the construction of the port.

Work on commissioning the five new ports would start only when the government is through with finalising a consultant for the West Bengal port, say sources.