20.02.10India Gives Nod to Proposed Deep Sea Port Plan

India's Cabinet has approved a proposal to build a deep-water port at Vadhavan in Maharashtra which will be able to accommodate 25,000-TEU vessels.

The new Vadhavan port, which will be 13th major port in the nation, will be developed on the public-private partnership (PPP) model at the cost of INR 655.45 billion (US$9.16 billion).

In India, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) is the biggest container port with container handling capacity of 5.1 million TEUs. With the completion of its ongoing construction of the 4th terminal, its capacity will increase to 10 million TEUs in 2023. But JN Port handles only mid-size container ships with depth up to 15m while the central government is in need of a deep draft port to accommodate ultra large container vessels (ULCVs) with capacity more than 20,000 TEUs. The new Vadhavan port has a natural draft of about 20 meters, making it possible to berth ULCVs.