The Hindu Business Line : Kolkata finds it difficult to fix Haldia target

The Kolkata Port Trust is finding it difficult to fix the Haldia Dock's traffic target for 2006-07. For two reasons. First, the port authorities are not sure of the probable throughput of crude in the current fiscal. Also, the throughput of bulk traffic is unlikely to post any significant increase as the existing berths have almost reached their saturation points.

Haldia Dock is supposed to lose substantial volume of crude traffic to Paradip in the current fiscal as the Paradip-Haldia crude pipeline is due for commissioning during the course of the year.

Haldia refinery of Indian Oil Corporation, so far importing crude through the Haldia dock, is to receive crude imported through the Paradip port and transported to the refinery by the 330-km long Paradip-Haldia crude pipeline.

Earlier, it was reported that the pipeline would be ready for operations from the beginning of 2006-07. However, according to indications available now, the construction of the pipeline, now in progress, may not be complete soon.

It is not simply the pipeline alone, the installation of single point mooring is also part of the project. Crude imported through the Pradip port, it is now felt, will start flowing into Paradip-Haldia crude pipeline to reach Haldia refinery in the third quarter of the current fiscal, if not fourth. In 2005-06, Haldia Dock handled a record 12.5 million tonnes (mt) of crude. The dock authorities are not sure now how much crude will it handle in the current year.

General cargo berths

Haldia dock is complete with 12 general cargo berths, which, according to dock sources, have virtually reached their saturation points, the level of capacity utilisation being more than 90 per cent.

The dock will be hard put to post any significant increase in cargo throughput unless new berths are constructed. The decks have been cleared for construction of two multipurpose berths, which will take another year or so to complete.

As the situation stands today, the total cargo throughput of the dock is unlikely to exceed 43/44 mt or so in 2006-07 as compared to 42.22 mt in 2005-06 and 36.2 mt in 2004-05 even if the crude traffic remains intact in the current fiscal.