Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Monday, Jun 20, 2005
Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Monday, Jun 20, 2005 |
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Logistics
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Shipping Corporate - Outlook Adanis bet big on port and SEZ Gaurav Raghuvanshi
Connectivity at the Mundhra port is much better now as the rail link has become operational and good roads connect it to the NH-8, making it nearly 200 km closer to Delhi from the western coast than Mumbai.
The Port itself is adding four new berths. The proposed ship building and repair yard will, in a year, be able to take in up to 100 vessels for repairs or breaking and have modern ship-lifts, laterally moving winches and dry-docking facilities. It would also build vessels to order. Mumbai-based I-Maritime Consultancy Pvt Ltd., is preparing the detailed project report for the project and it is likely to be ready by the end of this month. Australian marine consultants Maunsell have already prepared the technical design for the project. "We are talking with with financial institutions to fund the project", says the Adani Group Chief Executive Officer (Infrastructure), Mr Sanjay Gupta. The yard will have ship-breaking facilities where old vessels would be scrapped in a contained environment to avoid marine pollution. At Alang, which once boasted of the largest ship-breaking industry in the world, ships are simply hauled up to the beach and torn apart in the open. "In the first phase, we are looking at ship-lifting facilities and four land berths for repair or building. Ship-breaking, if it happens, will not be a core activity. In the second phase, we will not only expand the facility but also have wet berths to carry out repairs without lifting the vessel out of the water," said Mr Gupta. The project is likely to cost nearly Rs 1,000 crore and would be able to handle Panamax size vessels. There are plans to expand the facility and construct a dry-dock with the capability to handle Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) as part of the second phase, Mr Gupta told Business Line. On the ground, the Adanis are carrying out dredging to clear the channels for the proposed yard and new cargo berths. The port is aiming at a draught of over 17 metres while the existing natural draught is 16 metres. The Mundhra Port will see four new cargo berths in the next two years. At present, it has four berths for bulk cargo and two dedicated container berths that are being operated by P&O Ports. Construction has started on two berths for bulk cargo by Simplex Construction. They are expected to be ready by the December 2005 . Work on the two proposed container berths for Mundhra International Container Terminal (MICT) is also expected to commence shortly. The 57-km railway line linking the Port with the Western Railways network has become operational and is connected to the National Highway 8, making it nearly 200 km closer to Delhi from the western coast than Mumbai. The Port has 70,000 square metres of closed storage space for foodgrains, sugar and fertiliser, and another 3.25 lakh square metres of open space for steel sheets and pipes, ore, salt, scrap and clinkers. It also has a 12,000 tonnes-per-day wheat cleaning facility that is synchronised with the export conveyor system. For liquid cargo, the Port has seven 3.5 km-long pipelines and 62 tanks with a total storage capacity of 2.71 lakh kilolitres for edible oil, chemicals, petroleum products and bitumen. Thanks to aggressive marketing and an upturn in the shipping cycle, the port has seen a steady rise in the cargo handled. The total cargo handled by the Port, including the container traffic handled by the MICT, that is operated by P&O Ports, increased from 5.15 million metric tonnes (MT) in 2003-04 to 8.61 MT in 2004-05. For the current financial year, the Port has set a target of 14.7 MT. It is ready to receive crude oil for Indian Oil Corporation for its Panipat refinery expansion project. It has constructed a Single-Point Mooring (SPM) facility with a pipeline three km into the sea to receive crude. The SPM has a draught of 30 metres and can handle VLCCs. The real push to the Mundhra Port would, however, come from the 10,000 hectare Special Economic Zone that is being established. When completed, the Port will form a part of it. About 2,500 hectares has already been notified by the Central Government as SEZ and the Gujarat Government allotted another 3,000 hectares last week. The Adanis will acquire nearly 13,000 hectares for the entire project. "We have made big plans for the Mundhra SEZ and we will provide integrated infrastructure for all business, living, learning and recreational needs," says Mundhra SEZ Director, Mr S. J. Vijay. The SEZ would have a 250 MW coal-based power plant, water from the Narmada water canal, a desalination plant and even an airport within the complex. The SEZ has signed five project proposals involving a cumulative investment of Rs 200 crore. About a dozen more proposals are in the pipeline. In the next three years, the Adanis hope, Mundhra will emerge as a major economic hub of the country.
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