Essar Ports Limited has announced that it has completed investments in terminal projects at Salaya in Gujarat and Vizag in Andhra Pradesh and its capacity is likely to go up to 90 MTPA (million mt per annum) by month-end from the current 82 MTPA. The company announced the investment in Salaya and Vizag terminal projects has the potential to increase its revenues by 30 percent in 2018-19 due to third-party cargo growth.
The company said Essar Bulk Terminal Salaya Ltd (EBTSL) recently commenced commercial operations at its 20 million mt dry bulk terminal with the berthing of its first vessel. The facility, the first deep-draft terminal in the Saurashtra region, has been designed to berth vessels up to 100,000mt with a vessel turnaround time of less than two days, offering a competitive advantage to the local industry.
The Salaya terminal, which has been built at a cost of Rs 2,000 crore (approximately $313 million), is expected to emerge as the preferred deep draft port destination for shipment of dry bulk cargo in the Saurashtra region.
As SteelOrbis previously reported, Essar Vizag Terminal Ltd (EVTL) executed a Rs 830 crore (approximately $127 million) expansion project aimed at upgrading the iron ore handling capacity of the Vizag Terminal (Outer Harbor) from 12.5 MTPA to 24 MTPA. EVTL took over the Vizag Port expansion project in May 2015 on a Design-Build-Finance-Operate-Transfer (DBFOT) basis for a period of 30 years. The two fully integrated and automated facilities at Salaya and Vizag further the goal of port-led development set by the Government of India.