India's first mega transhipment hub at the Vizhinjam port was inaugurated today by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Adani Ports CEO and Whole Time Director Karan Adani. This is India's first deep-water container transshipment port being constructed at Vizhinjam, near Kerala's capital Thiruvananthapuram.
Zhen Hua 15 became the first cargo ship to dock at the port.
Adani Ports & SEZ Ltd has a 40 year concession agreement for developing and maintaining the project. The port, development for which started in 2015, will provide access to the most prominent international waterways, and position India as a top global transhipment hub.
Speaking at the inaugural event, Vijayan said that the port will be in full commission within the next five-six months and added that the port and the development that will take place around it will be beyond everyone's imagination.
The project was developed at a cost o Rs 7,700 crore, where the state government invested Rs 4,600 crore and the central government invested Rs 818 crore, Vijayan said. This also became the first project where the central government provided viability gap funding to Kerala, he said.
The port in Vizhinjam "has been the most challenging project that we have ever executed," Adani said while speaking at the inauguration event. Over the course of the development of this port various challenges including Cyclone Ockhi, the floods of 2018 and 2019, as well as the Covid pandemic presented themselves, delaying completion.
"Now that the first vessel has berthed, I would like to announce that we are keen to commence Phase II of this project...The port's strategic location - just 10 nautical miles from the International Shipping Route connecting Europe, the Persian Gulf and the Far East - is a huge advantage as we enter the second phase," Adani said.
Adani Group expects the port project to generate employment for more than 5,500 people through direct and indirect jobs.
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