The Hindu Business Line : Kolkata port explores options to make up for `crude traffic flight'

KOLKATA Port Trust is examining options to make up for the huge financial loss, an estimated Rs 100 crore annually, to be suffered by it due to the probable flight of about 7-8 million tonnes (mt) of crude traffic from Haldia dock to Paradip port. The diversion of the crude traffic will take place once the Paradip-Haldia crude pipeline becomes operational within a year.

One option is to explore opportunities for new types of cargoes and create facilities for their handling. The port authorities have decided to construct two berths at Haldia at an estimated cost Rs 30 crore each and to earmark one of these berths exclusively for handling chemicals. A dedicated chemical berth is needed, given the prospects of a jump in the imports (of raw materials) and exports (of finished products) of both Mitsubishi Chemicals, which operates a chemical plant at Haldia, and the Haldia Petrochemicals complex. The Indian Oil Corporation too has evinced interest in developing a chemical park comprising various chemical units at Haldia.

There is also a proposal to construct a barge jetty at Haldia dock. This follows Tata Steel's plan to import large quantities of limestone by barges from Thailand. In fact, two consignments totalling about 16,000 tonnes of the material have already been handled at berth number 12 of Haldia dock, which is within the impounded dock system.

Since Tata Steel has indicated to import the material by barges on a regular basis, the dock authorities plan to have the barge jetty constructed on the river outside the impounded dock system to avoid congestion within the dock.

While Tata Steel is likely to stop handling imported coking coal for its steel plants at Haldia and Paradip once Dhamra port becomes operational, some quantities of coking coal, an estimated 2 mt , will continue to be imported through the dock for the coking oven plant proposed to be set up by the company at Haldia.

Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL), now importing about 4 mt of coking coal through Haldia, proposes to step up the throughput in view of the expansion of the capacity of its various plants mostly located close to Haldia.

The commissioning of the Paradip-Haldia crude pipeline will certain take away from the Haldia dock a substantial volume of crude traffic. But the crude traffic will not disappear altogether, according to dock sources.

Some quantities of Ravva crude, which arrive at the dock by the coastal route in smaller vessels, will continue to be handled there. Besides, the throughput of petroleum products will rise.

According to one estimate, the product throughput is to rise to an estimated 6 mt from the present 4 mt in the next couple of years.

This will be possible because, along with IOC, private oil companies such as Reliance and Essar are to bring large quantities of petroleum products by the coastal route for discharge at Haldia for marketing in the Eastern region. In fact, Reliance has already built a tankage.

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