Gautam Adani-led Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) is planning to invest Rs 53,031 crore to expand Kattupalli port’s handling capacity from 24.65 tonnes to 320 million tonnes, an increase of almost 1200 per cent, reports The Hindu BusinessLine (BL).

Adani Ports is India’s largest ports developer and operator company. Presently, Adani operates ten ports and terminals, which together represent 24% of the country’s port capacity. The company acquired the Kattupalli port located in Tamil Nadu from the infrastructure firm Larsen & Toubro (L&T).

While Kattupalli currently has approval for constructing five berths with a total quay length of 1,900 metres, Adani has filed a master plan with the Union environment ministry to obtain approval for 9,567 metres of additional quay length.

The proposed infusion of funds will help transport the port into a multi-commodity one with facilities to handle cargo such as liquid, bulk, break-bulk, project cargo, dry cargo, general cargo, containers, ro-ro, automobile and other non-hazardous cargoes such as liquid, gas and cryogenic cargo.

Kattupalli is on the course to become India’s deepest port with an average berth depth of as much as 25 metres. When fully operational, the port will provide direct employment to about 1,500 persons and indirect employment to 4,500 people.

State-Run JNPT Still Leads The Segment

Govt-owned Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) has emerged as the sole Indian entry in the Lloyds list of top thirty container ports in the world.

“JNPT notched up five spots, to be 28th on the list, compared to its previous ranking. This is a validation of all the efforts and strategic initiatives being implemented at JNPT in order to enhance overall port efficiency,” said a government release.

Also Read: How Sagarmala Is Anchoring India’s Port-Led Development