Port receives Panamax vessel

In a major milestone, a Panamax vessel with a draft of 12.5 metres carrying imported steam coal has berthed at the Inner Harbour of Visakhapatnam Port Trust.

Merchant vessel Tai Promotion laden with 64,000 tonnes of cargo navigated into the Adani Vizag Coal Terminal after lightening at Gangavaram late in the evening on Wednesday. Another ship is expected to reach the Adani berth, developed on BOT basis with an investment of Rs.400 crore with mechanised facilities, in a day or two after lightening at general cargo berth.

An official of the Visakhapatnam port told

The Hindu on Thursday that a Handymax vessel, with less capacity than a Panamax, would berth with export cargo at WQ-3.

“With phase-wise increase in dredging, we are expecting to handle 14-metre draft fully laden Panamax vessels without lightening straight in the Inner Harbour from next month,” he said.

Adani terminal was commissioned in September, 2014.

In three phases, the dredging work comprising rock and soft dredging has been undertaken by involving Dredging Corporation of India and Dharti Dredging and Infrastructure Ltd at a total cost of Rs.300 crore.

While the DCI has been entrusted with the task of dredging one million cubic metres in the northern arm, Dharti has to blast rock strata between two hills near LPG Jetty and Dolphin’s Nose involving a complicated process. It is increasing the width of inner channel and inner turning circle. International Dredging Seaport Ltd had completed dredging in the Outer Harbour to handle Cape Size vessels in November, 2013 at a cost of Rs.130 crore. Indian Ports Association recently conducted a study on converting mechanised berthing of EQ2-5 berths so as to facilitate simultaneous landing of two fully laden Panamax vessels.

The Visakhapatnam port is investing nearly Rs.13,000 crore, most of it on BOT mode, as part of efforts to make it the most preferred port of South East Asia.