Vizhinjam port will position India at top of maritime map: Union Minister Sonowal

Thiruvananthapuram: Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Friday said that the international deep-water trans-shipment port at Vizhinjam here will offer a "stiff competition" to similar ports in Colombo and Singapore.

Sonowal said that with its "locational advantage" of being close to the international shipping lanes and its "deep-draft capabilities", the Vizhinjam sea port was well positioned as a preferred option for trans-shipment.

The Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways said in view of the port's capabilities to service mega size container vessels, he looks forward to seeing a "positive shift" in the international trans-shipment cargo from Colombo and Singapore to Vizhinjam in the near future.

"This port will offer a viable alternative and option to the major shipping lanes to mitigate the disruption in the global supply chain," he said in his speech on the occasion of welcoming the first cargo vessel at the port.

A 300-metre-long Chinese mothership 'San Fernando', which berthed at the port a day ago, was on Friday formally welcomed by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in a ceremony where Sonowal was also present.

The mothership had on Thursday docked at the port being developed by Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd, (APSEZ), India's largest port developer and part of the Adani Group, in a public-private partnership model at a cost of around Rs 8,867 crore.

The mothership carries large containers which will be transferred to other ships and later transported to other ports in the country and abroad.

The union minister said the port will help to position India on the top of the maritime map.

Sonowal said it was a big step towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision to create world-class port facilities in the country.

He further said that the port project also demonstrates how a successful public-private partnership (PPP) between the Centre, state government and the private sector "can unleash the immense potential of our maritime sector".

"This is one of the exemplary success stories of the PPP model in creating state-of-the-art port infrastructure in the country," he said.

Equipped with modern equipment and advanced automation and IT systems, Vizhinjam will become India's first semi-automated port, expected to be fully commissioned in September or October 2024.

The project, scheduled to be commissioned in 2019, was delayed due to issues with land acquisition, various natural calamities and the Covid-19 pandemic.