JN Port to scale up handling capacity to over 10 mn TEUs by April

Union Minister for Ports, Shipping, and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal on Thursday said that the container handling facility at Jawaharlal Nehru Port is being scaled up to 10 million TEUs.

Speaking with reporters after reviewing various infrastructure and development projects at the port, the minister also said that the upcoming Vadhvan Port in the Palghar district of Maharashtra would generate 10 lakh jobs in the region.

To be built as an all-weather port, the greenfield deep draft mega port will come up at an investment of Rs 76,200 crore.

The minister said JNPA soon will have a container handling capacity of around 10 million TEUs.

 

A senior JNPA official said that the container handling capacity currently stands at 7.4 million TEUs, which will go up to 10.4 million TEUs by April next year.

Sonowal said that Jawaharlal Nehru Port has become the first 100 per cent landlord port in the country, adding that, "accordingly we are aiming for bigger and bigger ships at this facility."

He also said that the port has developed quality infrastructure an is going to become an eco-friendly Port.

A landlord port acts as a landlord and regulatory body while private companies handle port operations.

JNPA also announced the signing of two MoUs -- one between the JNPA, Vadhvan Port, and REC for the disbursement of loans to support various infrastructure projects.

While the other one is between JNPA and Gateway Terminals India (GTI) for the implementation of shore power supply for vessels. Both the MoUs were inked in the presence of the Minister.

The minister also issued a Letter of Intent (LoI) to the concessionaires for its special economic zone (SEZ).

Significantly, the port operator has allotted plots for its SEZ in seven phases.

The recent e-auction of phase seven for 57 acres of land, JNPA said, received a remarkable response, with 21 bidders submitting bids for six unit plots and three co-developer plots.

Moreover, there was an overall 95.23 per cent increase in quoted value for these plots attracted an overall 95.23 per cent higher price above the reserve price, resulting in a revenue increase of 63 per cent above the reserve price for the port, it said.

In FY24, according to the port operator, its SEZ was able to generate EXIM trade worth Rs 15,000 crore.

As part of the strategic engagements, JNPA also declared August 22, 2024 as the date of award of concession to the concessionaire of two additional liquid berth 3 and 4, which on completion will take the ports liquid cargo capacity to 11MM tons per annum from 6.5 MMTPA at present with two existing liquid cargo berths.

These two additional berths will be equipped, operated, maintained, and eventually transferred through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model.

For this expansion, JNPA had awarded a Letter of Intent was JSW Infrastructure Limited on February 19, 2024, and the Concession Agreement with the company was signed on April 8.

The minister also launched a Whatsapp chatbot for the Vadhvan skilling programme developed by INPAT to empower the local community and enhance workforce development. This tool is designed to facilitate access to skilling programs, provide information about Vadhvan Port among others.

Sonowal also said that the government has completed 230 projects under the Sagarmala Project so far while another 220 projects are under different stages of implementation. "So this is how we are progressing," he added.

Later the minister also undertook a review meeting with the Palghar District officials on the Vadhvan Port, the foundation stone for which will be laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 30, as per the JNPA official.