The Centre today gave its nod to a Rs 1,145-crore project at Mormugao Port, Goa, for redevelopment of berths in the public private partnership (PPP) mode.
Mormugao is one of the 12 major ports in India.
“The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has given its approval for ‘Redevelopment of Berths 8, 9 and barge berths at the Port of Mormugao, Goa, on PPP mode at an estimated cost of Rs 1,145.36 crore,” the Ministry of Shipping said in a statement.
The project will be completed within 36 months from the date of award of concession.
“The project envisages reconstruction of three old berths and replacement of 38-year-old equipment by creating facilities for handling a variety of cargo like iron ore, bauxite, gypsum, limestone, fertilisers, steel coils and other general cargo at Mormugao Port catering to ships up to 1,85,000 DWT,” the statement said.
The existing capacity of these old berths with 38-year-old iron ore handling equipment is 13 million tonnes per annum (MTPA).
As a result of modernisation of berths, more efficient operations due to this project and utilisation of deeper draft of 19.5 meters being created in the port, an incremental capacity of 6.22 MTPA would be added, the statement said.
The project includes construction of berths, buildings, railway lines, dredging and reclamation and installation of equipment, it said.
The construction process, particularly the civil works, are labour-intensive and will lead to employment generation, it said, adding that the direct and indirect employment in this regard will be about 400 people per day.
The project will contribute to the industrial growth of Goa and will have a positive effect on industries such as steel, power, iron ore, agriculture and cement.
This project is primarily meant for export of iron ore to meet the growing demand of Goan iron ore due to the lifting of ban on export of iron ore.
Modern technology will be used to address environment concerns, which include bringing the entire iron ore to the port through barges using inland waterways of the rivers Mandovi and Zuari, while no road movement is involved.
Also, iron ore will be unloaded through grab un-loaders and discharged into hoppers for stockpiling and for cargo retrieval, bucket wheel reclaimers will be used and loaded onto vessels by stackers.
Other measures include covering the entire conveying system, installation of a dry fog system to ensure no fugitive dust emissions, besides installation of water spraying/ sprinkling systems at specific discharge points to mitigate problems.