Kandla port charts out blueprint for Rs 7,300-cr SEZ

PRIYANKA TALWAR

TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2006 03:04:28 AM]
 
NEW DELHI: Kandla Port Trust (KPT) has finalised the detailed project report for its Rs 7,300-crore special economic zone (SEZ) at the port. Apart from ship berthing and bunkering facilities, the port-based SEZ will have a ship building yard and single buoy mooring facilities. The project will be developed through public-private partnership (PPP).

The port trust is also looking for a co-developer on a build-operate-transfer basis for the SEZ. “While the trust remains the primary developer, we are looking for a co-developer since the SEZ project entails expertise beyond the ambit of the trust,” Rajashree Dabke, deputy financial advisor and chief accounts officer, KPT, said. The multi-product SEZ will be spread over 6,000 hectares. It will also have a Rs 1,800-crore commercial centre for private participation for heavy industries like fertiliser, coal, cement and steel to set up their facilities.

The ship repairing and ship building project has been estimated at a cost of Rs 370 crore. KPT has also lined up eight new berths at Rs 1,200 crore. The first phase envisages the development of four berths which will add a quay length of 1,100 metres. The proposed single buoy mooring (SBM) facility will give a boost to the handling of very large crude carriers (VLCCs) and other larger cargo vessels calling at the port.

KPT has already sent its application to the board of approval (BoA) for its nod. “We are confident of final approval, since the main constraint facing most applications is land. However, Kandla port has enough land at its disposal,” Ms Dabke said.

Kandla port has set a target throughput of 80 MMT by ’14. It has plans to deepen its channel to accommodate vessels up to 19 metres deep draft. The port, which has awarded work for formulating its twenty-year development plan to KPMG, has also set a long-term target of privatising various port services and e-customer relationship management to develop state-of-the-art infrastructure at the port. 
 
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/2027101.cms