The Hindu Business Line : Paradip posts 13 pc growth in Apr-Nov

Big jump
In the same period, the average growth of traffic in all the major ports taken together was eight per cent.
The coastal shipments of thermal coal, exports of iron ore, and imports of coking coal and fertiliser raw materials were particularly impressive.

Kolkata , Dec. 5

Between April and November this year, the Paradip port posted more than 13 per cent growth in traffic at 24.48 million tonnes (mt) as compared to 21.64 mt in the corresponding period of previous year. During the same period, the average growth of traffic in all the major ports taken together was eight per cent at 294.5 mt (272.7 mt).

Mr K. Raghuramaiah, Chairman of the Paradip Port Trust, while talking to Business Line over phone from Paradip, said November was particularly good for the port. During the month, the port achieved a traffic throughput of 3.79 mt (2.63 mt), thus posting more than 44 per cent growth. "Never before in the history of the Paradip port, such a big jump was achieved in a single month," Mr Raghuramaiah said.

The coastal shipments of thermal coal, exports of iron ore, and imports of coking coal and fertiliser raw materials were particularly impressive. However, cumulatively, i.e. between April and November, the thermal coal throughput at 7.88 mt was less than 8.32 mt achieved during the same period last year. In November, the throughput was 1.41 mt (0.98 mt).

Good year

The iron ore export traffic in first eight months of the current fiscal was 7.67 mt (6.64 mt). In November, it was 1.07 mt (0.80 mt). The cumulative coking coal import was 2.81 mt (2.6 mt) while in November, it was 0.44 mt (0.32 mt).

The import of fertiliser raw materials in November was 2.53 lakh tonnes (83,000 tonnes). The cumulative figures were 1.8 mt (1.08 mt).

The port, it might be noted, recently started unloading finished fertilisers after. However, only one ship of 27,000 tonnes has been handled so far. The Chairman indicated that two more ships would come, each carrying 35,000 tonnes, one in December and the other in January.

Mr Raghuramaiah, however, was sceptical about the port's chance of hitting the target of 40.8 mt of traffic in 2006-07. "The projected crude traffic is unlikely to materialise by March 2007," he observed.

However, it was indicated that even without the crude traffic, the port hoped to end the current fiscal with an estimated traffic throughput of 36/37 mt, as compared to 33.1 in 2005-06. "A 10 per cent growth is predicted," he added.