| The global trend in the preferred size of container vessels may not be favourable for India.
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| The trend in orders shows that there is an increasing preference for vessels with a capacity greater than 5,000 twenty foot equivalent units (TEUs). India, at present, can receive vessels of capacity only up to 3,000 TEUs.
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| According to data on orders placed until December 2003, compiled by British infrastructure journal Fairplay Solutions, 228 of the total 377 orders were for vessels with capacity above 5,000 TEUs.
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| During the last year, only six of the total orders placed were for vessels below 5,000 TEUs. China has ordered three container vessels with the highest known capacity of 9,200 TEUs.
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| “Large vessels are a cost-effective means of transporting cargo as greater shipment can be accommodated in one vessels, saving the cost of hiring another vessel or making more than one trip, which explains this tilt towards larger vessels,” a port official said.
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| India’s port infrastructure at present is insufficient to handle such large vessels. It is important for India to gear up for receiving larger vessels because even now Indian exporters bear a transhipment cost of more than $199 per TEU as large mainline vessels do not call on the Indian ports, and hence cargo has to be routed through Colombo, Singapore and Dubai.
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| With the development of hub ports at Kochi, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) and Chennai is on the cards, it is important to be prepared to receive the kind of vessels that exist when such terminals become operational.
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| According to the journal, all the ordered ships would be delivered on or before 2007. Vessels of capacity greater than 8,000 TEUs which form 39 per cent of the above-5000 TEUs vessels ordered, require an average draft of 15 to 18 metres.
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| This is available at international ports like Singapore and Dubai. However, even India has adequate draft at ports like JNPT, which has a draft of 14.5 metres and Chennai Port, which has a draft of 19.5 metres. India also has many minor ports like Mundra which can also boast of a high draught of 18 metres.
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| The main concern here is the depth of the approach channel, which is 11 metres at JNPT and 11.8 metres at Cochin Port, both potential sites for building a hub ports.
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| Work has started on deepening the entrance channel at JNPT to 13.8 metres, which would allow the port to handle vessels in the range of 5000-6000 TEUs.
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| The entrance channel in Singapore is in the range of 15-16 meters. Cost considerations also may be a constraint, as substantial investment would be required to upgrade infrastructure at container ports to handle large vessels.
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| Ports like Singapore have at least five rail-mounted cranes per berth to handle one vessel. India, on the other hand, has just 20-22 cranes, with only one to two cranes operating per berth. One rail-mounted crane entails an investment of around Rs 30-45 crore.
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| Even though India has made strides in productivity, it may not be enough to handle large vessels. Due to inadequate number of cranes, the turnaround time of large vessels will also be affected.
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| At present, the average turnaround time in India is 2.53 days when the maximum capacity it handles is 3000 TEUs. Indian ports also have locational disadvantage as a result of which the mainline vessels have to incur high costs to travel the extra distance and hence would rather call on Colombo, Singapore and Dubai which are much nearer from the main route. v Thus, India needs to take special care to ensure that its productivity is up to the international standards and its charges are highly competitive to make up for this drawback.
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Major league blues
- Rise in demand for vessels with a capacity greater than 5,000 TEUs
- 228 of the total 377 orders were for vessels with capacity above 5,000 TEUs
- China has ordered three container vessels with the highest known capacity of 9,200 TEUs.
- India’s port infrastructure insufficient to handle large vessels
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