Adani Ports and JSW Infra make logistics anchor for cargo growth plans

MUMBAI : Adani Ports and JSW Infrastructure, India’s leading private port operators, are expanding their logistics services to capture extra cargo while they run integrated transport services.

“With incrementally less availability of lucrative port assets that can drive cargo volumes, port operators have naturally shifted their focus on deriving value in the upstream integration, i.e., the logistics space. The synergies being derived through end-to-end service capability for importing or exporting cargo, along with handling of the domestic cargo, are driving port operators to invest in building hinterland assets,” said Varun Gogia, assistant vice-president & sector head, corporate ratings, Icra.

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ), India’s top private port operator, has 12 multimodal logistics parks (MMLPs), 132 rakes, more than 3 million square feet of warehousing space, around 6,000 containers, and 937 trailers and tipper trucks.

It has 18,250 hectares of industrial land and is building a bank of over 1,528 acres at various industrial clusters, which are integrated with hinterland logistics (like rail and road).

APSEZ’s management, in earnings’ call for Q4 FY25, said it aims to become an integrated transport utility company. The company has a truck-management platform and a freight-forwarding business.

“These are capitalised businesses. They come with very high return on capital employed (ROCE),” said D Muthukumaran, chief financial officer (CFO) of APSEZ, adding that growth in logistics is likely to be inorganic (business growth from acquisitions).

JSW Infrastructure (JSW Infra) acquired a majority stake in Navkar Corporation, a logistics firm, for Rs 1,644 crore in FY25.