India Port Goals

8 Record breaker - the 17,292TEU capacity APL

Raffl es calling Mundra in January

JNPT, Adani Mundra Port and APSEZ have seen substantial volume increases, expect further growth and have expansion plans underway together with strong commitments to achieving green goals.

JNPT: Records and Ambitions

JNPT has reported a strong increase in volumes for last year, with total container traffic increasing from 4.47 million TEU in 2020 to 5.63 million TEU in 2021. Both container throughput and total cargo of 76.14m tonnes were the highest ever handled at JNPT, and this was the highest export/import container volume handled by any port in India.

NSIGT (DP World’s Nhava Sheva International Gateway Terminal) and BMCT (PSA’s Bharat Mumbai Container Terminals) each handled 1.17m TEU, both terminals crossing the one million TEU mark for the first time.

Trial operations started at JNPT’s new coastal berth, under the Sagarmala programme’s goal to boost coastal cargo movements. Digitalisation has also progressed, and there has been investment in rail facilities.

JNPT has put in place initiatives to acquire ‘green port status’ within the time period of the Maritime India Vision 2030. An action plan includes sourcing 60 per cent of its energy from renewables and also includes onshore power supply for tugs and other vessels, the installation of solar panels, electric RTGs, LNG bunkering, energy efficient smart lighting, water conservation and green belt cover.

Phase 1 of BMCT (PSA Mumbai), providing 1000 metres of quay with the deepest berths in JNPT, began operations in January 2018. The

JNPT has put in place initiatives to acquire ‘green port status’ ‘‘ GROWTH, GREEN GOALS & CAPACITY UPLIFT

terminal is equipped with double stack train infrastructure to support India’s Dedicated Freight Corridor for trains carrying more and higher loads at higher speed. Phase 2, when completed, will bring total berth length to 2000 metres and capacity to 4.8 million TEU.

In February, PSA Mumbai commissioned a 1MW solar farm; the 1.3-hectare facility, featuring rooftop solar panels, is expected to generate 13 per cent of the terminal’s power requirements and reduce CO2 emissions by more than 1200 tonnes per year. PSA Mumbai is targeting a 50 per cent reduction in carbon emissions by 2030, compared to 2019. It will deploy a fleet of all-electric RTGs and other electric vehicle options in its Phase 2 development.

Also at JNPT, APM Terminals Mumbai (Gateway Terminals India, GTI) is embarking on a $115 million development to increase its container handling capacity by 10 per cent to 2.18 million TEU. GTI is a joint venture between APMT and Concor.

Adani Mundra Port: Big Ship Ready

The 17,292 TEU APL Raffles became the largest container vessel to call in India, when it berthed at the joint venture Adani CMA Mundra Terminal in January.

This was a milestone for Mundra Port, which has claimed first place among container ports in India in 2021. The port handled 4.9 million TEU in the first three quarters of fiscal year 2022.

“The call of APL Raffles not only endorses the capabilities of the port to handle large container vessels, but also reiterates the role of ACMTPL in boosting trade between India and its key trading partners,” said Adani.

The port has 26 berths and two single-point moorings, and annual capacity for 249 million tonnes of cargo including dry bulk, breakbulk, project cargo, containers, vehicles liquid bulk, and crude oil.

Adani East Coast Growth Story

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ), which operates terminals at a dozen locations in India, reported a 22 per cent growth in cargo volumes for the first nine months of fiscal year 2022, from 174m tonnes to 212m tonnes.

Containers grew by 25 per cent to 6.2m TEU, while dry cargo up by 21 per cent, & liquids (including crude) by 22 per cent.

APSEZ said growth was driven by the east coast, where volumes were up by 58 per cent compared to 10 per cent on the west coast.

“APSEZ had shown tremendous resilience all through the pandemic period,” said Karan Adani, CEO: “Our learnings in 2020 helped us weather the storm and our operational expertise allowed us to continue our expansion. The addition of two ports in 2021 – Krishnapatnam and Gangavaram in Andhra Pradesh on the east coast – to the ones on the west coast continued to tighten our pan-India presence. Our under-construction port of Vizhinjam in Kerala, along with our new terminal in Colombo, Sri Lanka, will act as a new transshipment hub in southeast Asia.”

APSEZ’s carbon offsetting, mangrove afforestation and terrestrial plantation, as well its focus on the use of renewable energy, have put it “well on the road to achieving carbon neutrality by 2025 and becoming the world’s most sustainable ports company,” he added.