Cabinet Gives In-principle Approval For New Major Port At Vadhavan In Maharashtra

The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has given its 'in-principle' approval for setting up a Major Port at Vadhavan near Dahanu in Maharashtra. Total cost of the project is likely to be Rs.65,544.54 crore. Vadhavan port will be developed on "land lord model". A Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) will be formed with Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) as the lead partner with equity participation equal to or more than 50% to implement the project. The SPV will develop the port infrastructure including reclamation, construction of breakwater, besides establishing connectivity to the hinterland. All the business activities would be undertaken under PPP mode by private developers. The position of JN Port, the biggest container port in India is 28th in the world with a traffic of 5.1 million TEUs (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units). Even after the completion of 4th terminal at JN Port with a capacity increase upto10 million TEUs by 2023, it will stand as the 17thlargest container port in the world. With the development of Vadhavan port, India will break into the countries with top 10 container ports in the world.