The Hindu Business Line : Chinese consortium may bag Vizhinjam box terminal project

A CONSORTIUM of Chinese companies has emerged as the likely joint promoter of the proposed international container trans-shipment terminal at Vizhinjam near here.

According to highly placed sources, the evaluation committee, which met here on Saturday, has found the financial bid submitted by the consortium was acceptable to the State Government. There were two contenders in the fray, the other being Gammon India Ltd.

The consortium comprises two Chinese companies — Kaidi Electric Power Company and China Harbour Engineering Company — and the Mumbai-based Zoom Developers.

The evaluation committee, which has examined the technical bids, will finalise the selection within the next couple of weeks and forward its recommendation to the State Government, the sources said.

The Ports Department had floated the tender in January last year and it extended the last date thrice for submitting the bids. The department officials attributed the extension of the date to requests made by the prospective bidders for changes in the project structure.

Though as many as 22 companies bought the Request for Proposal, only two submitted the techno-economic bids by the revised last date of August 17.

The sources said the consortium had quoted below Rs 100 crore as soft loan from the Government. This was substantially lower than around Rs 300 crore reckoned by the Finance Department. The loan is to be repaid in 10 equal instalments from the 11th year onwards.

The State Government will have equity participation to the tune of 24 per cent in the joint venture and this is proposed to be raised from non-resident Keralites and Government agencies. At a debt-equity ratio of 1:1.5, the Government's share worked out to be Rs 180 crore in the Rs 1,850-crore first phase of the project.

This apart, another Rs 80 crore has to be spent on putting in place basic infrastructure such as roads, rail lines, electricity and water supply. The Government has formed a company, namely, Vizhinjam International Seaport Ltd for the purpose.

However, going by the soft loan quoted by the consortium, the Government's total commitment would be only around Rs 180 crore, the sources said. It has sought viability gap funding of Rs 370 crore from the Centre for the project.

In the first phase, a 1,245-metre-long berth is proposed to be constructed to handle vessels of 8,000 TEUs. The total cost of the project is put at Rs 4,200 crore and the first phase is planned to be completed by 2009.