Adani Ports inks pact with L&T for Kattupalli Port operations

Adani Ports and Larsen & Toubro (L&T) today said they have inked a pact to oversee operations of Kattupalli Port in Tamil Nadu.

"Adani Ports (Adani) has entered into a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding with L&T Shipbuilding (L&T) for evaluating the operations of the port at Kattupalli, Tamil Nadu, with effect from October 2015 for one month," Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) said in a filing to BSE.

It said definitive agreements in this regard will be entered into later.

"Adani shall be responsible for EBIDTA gains and losses arising from the port operation for this period," the filing said.

L&T, in a separate filing, said the shipyard will continue to be managed and operated by L&T Shipbuilding.

The development comes amid reports that Gautam Adani-led Adani group is likely to take over the operational and management control of L&T Kattupalli International Container Terminal near Chennai to strengthen its presence on the east cost.

APSEZ in June got Kerala government's nod for developing the Rs 4,089-crore Vizhinjam International Deepwater Seaport project.

The Ahmedabad-headquartered group, which already operates the country's busiest port at Mundra in Gujarat, has bagged the order with an estimated cost of Rs 4,089 crore with 4-year timeframe for commissioning of the project.

Chairman Gautam Adani had then said, "It is a strategic location being very close to international shipping route and has the potential to become the biggest trans-shipment hub in the region."

At present, about one million TEUs of Indian cargo are getting trans-shipped through foreign ports like Colombo.

Development of Vizhinjam port will help in cost saving to Indian trade as the boxes can be trans-shipped at a lower cost from Vizhinjam port.

APSEZ also operates ports in Mundra, Hazira, Tuna-Tekra (Kandla) and Dahej in Gujarat, Dhamra in Odisha and specialised coal handling facilities in Mormugao in Goa and Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh. It is setting up a container terminal at Ennore in Tamil Nadu.

APSEZ is part of the Adani group, which is one of India's leading business houses with a revenue of over $10 billion.