Competition is bound to grow among Visakhapatnam and Gangavaram Ports with Gopalpur Port located near Berhampur in South Odisha on the East Coast re-commissioning its operations on Saturday.
Visakhapatnam and Gangavaram ports in the city together handle around 85 million tonne with big plans under way to expand their capacity.
Kakinada Port in the neighbourhood has also stepped up its campaign to take away seafood and other cargo from the huge hinterland by launching container operations.
Gopalpur is strategically located between Paradeep and Visakhapatnam and developed on a four-km stretch with good road and rail connectivity. It presently has adequate stack yard space for storage of bulk and break bulk cargo with plans for up-gradation as per the traffic demand.
Gopalpur Port is mainly targeting factories and the mineral-rich hinterland of Odisha, Jharkhand, and Chhattisgarh. “We are developing facilities to provide the lowest cost and most efficient option for users in the region. The port is being developed in three phases,” a spokesman for Orissa Stevedores Limited, the main promoter of the port, told The Hindu.
Renovated
Gopalpur Port, which was devastated by Cyclone Phailin and Hudhud, has been renovated and at present, it has a multipurpose berth with semi-mechanised handling facilities. It commenced its commercial operations and trial shipments during April, 2013 and after renovation, it received the maiden shipment on Saturday.
Besides the open stack yards, there are 15 covered sheds with a total area of 12,000 sq. m. for storage of break bulk cargoes. Faster evacuation of the cargo will be through NH-516, a two-lane road up-gradable to eight lanes in future connecting NH-16, six km away.
Greenfield port
For the Rs.3,500-crore Greenfield port proposed at Bhavanapadu in Srikakulam district, Adani Ports & SEZ Ltd is among five firms which have submitted Request for Qualification documents.
Other bidders who have been short-listed include Navayuga, Gangavaram Port, Kakinada Port and UTL Technologies.
The Adani Group has already acquired Dhamra Port in Odisha and in the process of taking over Kattupalli near Chennai to strengthen their presence on the East Coast. The government did not consider the offer of Visakhapatnam Port Trust to develop Bhavanapadu as its satellite port.
It mainly targets the mineral-rich hinterland of Odisha, Jharkhand, and Chhattisgarh
