Gopalpur to be all-weather direct berthing port

BERHAMPUR: Gopalpur Ports Limited is ready to commence work on conversion of the minor port at Gopalpur to an all- weather deep water direct berthing port as soon as it is awarded with the necessary clearances. Environmental clearance is expected by the end of this month and the phase -II development of the port would start immediately. All statutory studies, investigations and engineering duly vetted by IIT Madras have been completed. The master plan is ready and the port company had already submitted the detailed project report to the Government. With the clearances forthcoming, the all- weather port would be put in place in 24 months, Managing Director of the GPL said. The all-weather deep water direct bething port would have two berths, one oil jetty and one Coast Guard jetty and is scheduled to be ready by 2012. It would have a capacity of handling 20 million tonne per annum. The port is further planned to be upgraded to be able to handle 120,000 DWT vessels by 2016 and the ultimate handling capacity is envisaged to be 45 million tonne by 2026. The conversion of the all-weather port is slated to start with an investment of Rs 1,250 crore. The port company, a consortium led by Orissa Stevedores Limited and Sara International Limited, today handed over a cheque of Rs 36 lakh towards the first revenue share payment to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik as per the terms of Concession Agreement with the State Government. The Consortium, which signed the agreement in September 2006, commenced operations on the seasonal port within a record three months against a targetted 12 months. In the first year the port handled 50,000 tonne of cargo. In 2007-08 shopping season between November and May, the port handled 2,46,738 tonne while in 2008-09 2,52,351 tonne of cargo was handled. The port has also made a record by discharging 10,100 MT of muriate of potash (MOP) in February this year within just 24 hours from the US vessel mv Tenshou Maru carrying 49,560 MT of MOP. This is an all time highest discharge rate in any anchorage port in India. Director Charchit Mishra said, the successful handling of more than half a million tonne till date has prompted shipping companies to evince keen interest in sending vessels here. The all-weather port once operational would ease the congestion off Paradip port and fill the gap between Paradip and Visakhapatnam ports.

Source: New Indian Express, GPL