Global ports operator DP World has won a major concession to develop, operate and maintain the mega container terminal at Deendayal port in the Indian state of Gujarat, as it seeks to ramp up its investments in Asia’s third-largest economy.
The project involves the construction of a mega container terminal at Tuna-Tekra through a public-private partnership, DP World said in a statement on Thursday.
The contract was awarded by the government-owned Deendayal Port Authority under a build-operate-transfer basis, the port operator said.
The value of the deal was not disclosed.
“India represents a significant landscape for opportunity. As the value chain becomes more integrated, significant growth opportunities exist across the entire Indian ports and logistics space,” Sultan bin Sulayem, group chairman and chief executive of DP World, said.
“With the development of Tuna-Tekra mega container terminal in Gujarat, DP World will be well placed to capture these opportunities, further connecting northern, western and central India with global trade.”
Despite global macroeconomic and geopolitical headwinds, the UAE and India have continued to boost trade in recent months.
Bilateral trade between the two countries increased by 30 per cent in the eight months to January, after they implemented the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (Cepa) in May, according to Sunjay Sudhir, India’s ambassador to the UAE.
The countries are already on course to achieving $88 billion worth of trade in this financial year, he said at the India-UAE Partnership Summit in Dubai last month.
DP World’s market share of India’s ports sector is estimated at 28 per cent, Mohammed Al Muallem, executive vice president of DP World, said last May.
Through its joint platform with India’s National Investment and Infrastructure Fund, DP World is investing up to $3 billion to create integrated logistics infrastructure in the country.
The NIIF said it would invest 22.5 billion Indian rupees ($300 million) for a 22.5 per cent stake in DP World’s wholly-owned subsidiary Hindustan Ports in June of last year.
The terminal at Deendayal port will include a 1,100-metre berth and be capable of handling vessels carrying more than 18,000 TEUs (20-foot equivalent units). The container terminal’s total capacity will be 2.19 million TEUs, DP World said.
It will cover an area of about 63 hectares and be connected to a network of roads, highways, railways and dedicated freight corridors.
The terminal will help “unlock future container traffic growth in India, catering to exports and imports from northern, western and central India, reducing logistics cost and enhancing efficiencies across supply chains”, the statement said.
DP World's investment comes as the Indian government seeks to quadruple the country’s port handling capacity under its Vision 2047 strategy.
“The project will complement initiatives of the Indian government, such as the PM Gati Shakti Master Plan and National Logistics Policy, which has been introduced to provide greater focus on developing multimodal logistics infrastructure promoting economic growth,” DP World said.
The company currently operates five marine terminals in India, including two in Mumbai and one each in Mundra, Cochin and Chennai, with a combined capacity of approximately 6 million TEUs.
With the addition of the Tuna-Tekra container terminal, DP World will have a capacity of 8.19 million TEUs, the statement said.
DP World has seven multimodal inland terminals connected to its rail network, cold storage facilities and container freight stations.
It is also developing three economic zones in Mumbai, Cochin and Chennai.
