The Hindu Business Line : Cashew exporters seek extension of sops from DP World

Kochi, June 3 The cashew exporters at Kollam have requested the container terminal operator at Kochi, DP World, to continue with the 14 free days as offered by the terminal during the previous cashew seasons.

At an interactive session jointly organised by the terminal operator and the Kochi Port at Kollam, the exporters also suggested an ICD in Kollam in order to reduce transportation costs.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Suresh Joseph, General Manager, DP World, pointed out that off-dock container freight stations are now available for storing containers for a longer duration at reasonable rates.

With the increase in throughput and with a view to avoiding congestion inside the terminal, the customers were requested to evacuate their containers as quickly as possible, to ensure quicker turn around of trailers leading to better productivity and overall efficiency. The movement to the CFS will benefit the trade and the terminal alike by reducing the overall transaction costs, he said.

It was also pointed out in the meeting that cashew exports to Australia were entirely routed through Tuticorin due to the stringent and time consuming procedures followed by the Plant Quarantine, Kochi. Mr Bharatan Pillai, Chairman, Cashew Export Promotion Council, along with DP World officials, agreed to take up the issue with the authorities concerned.

Mr Elvis D’Cruz, Terminal Manager, DP World, assured the trade that all efforts would be taken to eliminate bottlenecks in the system and make the container terminal a customer-friendly one. He also urged all the stakeholders of the port to work together to address issues jointly for the growth of business through Kochi.

The interactive session focused on the status report of the International Container Transshipment project at the Vallarpadam SEZ as well as the other customer-centric initiatives that have been put in place at the Rajiv Gandhi Container Terminal.

Capt Subash Kumar, Deputy Chairman of the port, highlighted the significant proposals likely to taken up in the Port like LNG Terminal, the Ship Repair facility, the Bunkering Terminal and the International Cruise Terminal, besides giving an overview of the existing facilities at the Port, the traffic dealt with and the efforts taken by the Port to reduce transaction cost to its customers by increasing efficiency and transparency.

Mr Muhammed Kutty, Managing Director, Falcon Infrastructures, gave an update on the facilities at its CFS and the cost efficiencies that could be had in moving the containers to its CFS. He also mentioned that the CFS offers 5 days of free storage for the containers and a lower ground rent.

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