Adani Ports and special economic zone (SEZ) on Sunday announced the arrival of the first mother ship at its Vizhinjam port in Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum), the capital of the southern Indian state of Kerala
This is a milestone event marking Indias entry into the global transshipment and ushering in a new era in Indias maritime history, positioning Vizhinjam as a critical player in the international trade routes, Adani Ports and Logistics said in a press release.
The announcement was made at an event, inaugurated by the Chief Minister of Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan, at an event presided over by V. N. Vasavan, the Minister for Ports, Kerala and attended by Sarbananda Sonowal, the Union Minister for Ports, Shipping, and Waterways, as the chief guest.
The announcement also marks the debut of Indias first automated port with state-of-the-art infrastructure and facilities, capable of handling large ships, with its modern container handling equipment and world-class automation and IT systems.
San Fernando, the 300-meter-long container vessel operated by Maersk with a capacity of 8,000-9,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units), will be availing the services at the port to offload about 2,000 containers and for 400 container movements within the vessel.
Highlighting Vizhinjams significance, Karan Adani, Managing Director of Adani Ports and SEZ Limited (APSEZ) said: "San Fernando - now berthed at our harbour is a symbol of a new, glorious achievement in Indian maritime history. It is a messenger that will tell the world that Indias first transshipment terminal and the largest deepwater port has begun commercial operations".
Talking about the ports state-of-art infrastructure he added, "No other port in India - including our own highly advanced Mundra Port - has these technologies. What we have already installed here is South Asias most advanced container handling technology. And once we complete the automation and the Vessel Traffic Management System, Vizhinjam will be in a class of its own as one of the most technologically sophisticated transshipment ports in the world."
Currently, 25% of Indias container traffic is transshipped en route to the destination. Until now, despite Indias rising trade with the world, the country did not have a dedicated transshipment port, resulting in three-fourths or 75% of Indias transshipped cargo being handled by ports outside India.
Vizhinjam, will not only facilitate the movement of transshipment traffic into India but the strategically located port will also play a pivotal role in handling traffic along major routes connecting India, such as traffic between the US, Europe Africa, and the Indian subcontinent as well as US, Europe, Africa and the Far East, and thus playing a critical role in the international trade routes.
Vizhinjam International Seaport in Kerala is a critical economic infrastructure project promoted by the Government of Kerala in a Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode. It is the largest private sector investment in Kerala. Adani Ports and Logistics formed a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), Adani Vizhinjam Port Private Limited (AVPPL), to develop the project.
APSEZ, a part of the globally diversified Adani Group has evolved from a port company to an Integrated Transport Utility providing an end-to-end solution from its port gate to customer gate. It is the largest port developer and operator in India.
