GMR forays into seaports, to build green-field commercial port at Kakinada

The Kakinada Special Investment Region is being developed as a port-based, multi-product industrial park by GMR

GMR Infrastructure Limited has been awarded a green-field commercial port at Kakinada, abutting the over 10,000-acre Kakinada SEZ controlled by the group. The company said it has made a successful bid to develop the port through the Swiss Challenge mode under the revenue sharing model. 
 

"The port is located at one of the strategic nodes of the Vizag-Chennai Industrial Corridor and is expected to benefit from the associated corridor developments. Given the strategic location, the port is expected to become the gateway to the east coast of India. Once operational, the port will have initial capacity of 16 million tonnes," the company said in a statement. 

Under the terms of the agreement, the port operator has to pay 2.7 per cent of the gross revenues as a share to the Andhra Pradesh government for a period of 30 years. The government has agreed to provide external infrastructure -- road infrastructure connecting the nearest highway to the port boundary, water supply up to port boundary, and power supply from the nearest substation according to the AP Ports Policy. 

The project marks GMR's entry into seaport operations. Currently, the group has a major presence in power projects, airports and the road sector. The GMR group-led consortium had built the country's first private sector-built green-field international airport at Hyderabad. Later, it went on to become the operator of the Delhi airport, besides developing a number of airports overseas. The group's airport portfolio has a passenger capacity of around 156 million in operation and under development. Further, it has a diversified energy portfolio of around 7,000 Mw. The group also has coal mines in Indonesia. 

"This is an important milestone that will charter new frontiers of recognition and growth for the GMR group, in India and internationally. This will augur a huge leap forward in upturning the economic development graph of the region while spiralling up our port's potential to attract even more prestigious clients, taking the project valuations up by many folds," B V N Rao, business chairman (transportation and urban infrastructure) of GMR Infrastructure Limited, said. 

The Kakinada Special Investment Region (KSIR) is being developed as a port-based, multi-product industrial park by GMR. The port would be spread over 1,950 acres, while the industrial park will have the remaining 8,500 acres, according to the company.