DPA Kandla is the first Port to expand beyond Gujarat

GANDHIDHAM : Deendayal Port Authority Kandla, in Gujarat is expected to become the first major port in India to expand into other states. Currently the port authorities are engaged in high-stakes negotiations for taking over operations of strategic port terminals across Gujarat, Maharashtra and Karnataka.

“We are in active discussions with certain ports in Maharashtra and Karnataka. We are also in talks with Gujarat Maritime Board to take over and collaborate on some part of their business and run it in an efficient manner by replicating our operations at Kandla,” said a senior official from Deendayal Port Authority (DPA) in Kandla on conditions of anonymity.

“We are looking to expand our footprint by subsuming some terminals in some of the ports in these states,” the official said that DPA was looking to take over operations at these ports. Last year Kandla handled over 150 million tonne of cargo and stood as the second largest major port in terms of volumes in the country missing the top slot to Paradip for a second consecutive year. When asked if DPA was looking to take over operations of terminals in government or privately held ports, the official said, “We are ownership agnostic. We can go for government or private ports.”

Talking about the advantages of the expansion, the official said, “We will be able to generate more throughput. The same time we will also be able to replicate the best practices and thirdly it will help in decongestion.” While 60 per cent of the total cargo handled by Kandla is petroleum, oil and lubricants (POL), the port also handles 70 per cent of India’s salt exports, 90 per cent of India’s timber imports, foodgrains, edible oil, chemicals and containers.

DPA is already in the process of setting up a deep draft multicargo berth that will handle 18 million tonne per annum (18MTPA) of dry bulk, project cargo and break-bulk cargo at Kandla. It is also constructing a new 2.3 million TEUs container berth at Kandla under the PPP mode which is expected to be commissioned around September 2027.