The Hindu Business Line : Dubai Ports set to win bid to build ICTT at Kochi

DUBAI Ports International (DPI) is set to win the deal for building and operating an international container trans-shipment terminal (ICTT) at Kochi Port by quoting a revenue share of 33.30 per cent when the price bids were submitted and opened on Thursday.

Of the other two bidders, the IL&FS-Punj Lloyd consortium with West Port Malaysia as its management contractor quoted a revenue share of 10.123 per cent.

"The third bidder, Maersk A/S, did not quote a price bid as such but submitted a letter expressing its interest in the project and sought more time to analyse and submit a price bid. So, it is not a responsive bid," said a Shipping Ministry official.

However, many reputed private operators such as P&O Ports, PSA Corporation, Adani group, International Container Terminal Services, ACT Shipping, Zim Israel Navigation Company, L&T and Associated Container Terminal Ltd backed out of the bidding process without submitting their price bids when the deadline closed on Thursday for the Rs 2,000-crore project, he official added.

Both P&O Ports and Adani group backed out as their plea to extend the deadline for submission of price bids by a fortnight was not entertained by the port trust.

"The time was short and we could not complete a review of the project," a P&O Ports official said.

An Adani group official said: "We needed some more time to prepare the price bid and asked the port trust to extend the deadline. But we did not get a favourable response."

The management of Kochi Port Trust will take the highest bid of Dubai Ports International to the board of trustees on March 29 for approval and then submit it to the Government for ratification.

Shipping Ministry officials said that the response to the latest bidding process - the fourth attempt made by the Government in a decade - was better than the previous attempt.

The Government had relaxed the bidding terms and conditions to sweeten the deal after a failed attempt last year during which Maersk A/S and CSX World Terminals Ltd submitted price bids in single digits with several counter conditions that were not acceptable to the Government.

As per the revised terms, the successful operator will be allowed to operate the existing Rajiv Gandhi Container Terminal (RGCT) at the port for a maximum of 10 years before shifting operations to the new site at Vallarpadam or Puthuvypeen islands.

Further, the private operator should start work on building the ICTT upon reaching a threshold limit of four lakh twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) at RGCT.

Within two years of handling four lakh TEUs, the private operator should shift operations to ICTT.

In other words, if the private operator handles four lakh TEUs during the fifth year of operations at RGCT, they should shift operations to the ICTT during the seventh year.

In case they reach the cut-off level during the eighth year, they should shift during the 10th year.

But if it is found on review during the eighth year of operations at RGCT that the private operator has not been able to reach the cut-off limit, rendering the development of an ICTT unviable, the concession and licence agreement will be terminated at the 10th year.

The Government had also agreed to finance capital and maintenance dredging at the port on its own against the earlier plan to undertake only the capital dredging.

More Stories on : Shipping | Infrastructure

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
IA slashes fares

Ripley set to clinch berth at Haldia dock

Dubai Ports set to win bid to build ICTT at Kochi

Capexil plea to convert Petrapole LCS into port

Cendant to promote IBS airlines passenger service product