Work On Tamil Nadu’s First Logistics Park likely to start in June

CHENNAI : The construction of Multi-Modal Logistics Park (MMLP) located near Chennai is scheduled to commence in June.

The officials of the Chennai Port Trust who visited the project site last month expressed confidence that the work will begin in full swing in three months.

Earlier, in November 2022, the Road Transport Ministry had awarded Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) the contract for setting up the Chennai MMLP at a total cost of Rs. 1,424 crore.

The National Highways Logistics Management (NHLM) had received three bids, including Adani Group, for the Chennai MMLP. Two bidders had technically qualified for the financial bid opening.

The logistics park at Chennai is strategically located at 52 km from Chennai Port, 87 km from Kattupalli Port and 80 km from Ennore Port and will be a “focal point of logistics in the southern region”.

The MMLP, which is coming up on 184.27 acres of land at Mappedu village in Thiruvallur district, is close to the automobile and electronics manufacturing clusters on the Sriperumbudur-Oragadam industrial belt. Besides, it is in close proximity to the Chennai Peripheral Ring Road (CPPR).

In order to develop the project, a Government Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) has been formed amongst National Highways Logistics Management Limited (NHLML), Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), Chennai Port Authority & Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation (TIDCO).

The SPV will provide 4-lane NH connectivity of 5.4 km with estimated cost of Rs 104 Crore and new rail siding to the MMLP site of length ~10.5 km with estimated cost of Rs 217 crore.

The project which is being built on a Design, Build, Finance, Operate, and Transfer (DBFOT) model, has a total concession period of 45 years. Over a period of 45 years, this facility would be able to cater to a cargo volume of 7.17 Million Metric Tonne (MMT).

Various commodities, including textile, apparel, grain, electronics, consumer goods and automobiles and automobile components may be handled at the MMLP. The project will facilitate efficient, cost-effective and value-added logistics services such as cargo aggregation and disaggregation, distribution, inter-modal transfer, sorting, packing, repacking, etc.

The Southern Railway has already given clearance for having a railway corridor plan from the closest railway line near Kadambattur station to the facility.

The MMLP will be developed in three phases and Phase-1 development will be finished in two years i.e. by 2025 leading to commercial operations. While the phase II will take close to 10 years for completion, phase III will take 15 years from the appointed date.

The Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) is developing 35 MMLPs at some of the highest freight movement regions in the country in order to enhance logistics efficiency across the country.

Out of these 35 MMLPs, 15 are prioritised for award by FY 2024-25 under Phase-I of Bharatmala Pariyojana.These MMLPs have been planned for development under PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan on PPP mode.

Within these 15 MMLPs, the MMLP at Jogighopa in Assam is currently under development with total cost of Rs 694 crore and will become operational in FY 2023-24. Jetty work for the MMLP at Assam has been awarded separately and that work shall also be completed in 2023-24.