The government will soon finalise the new tariff guidelines for major ports in the country, which would provide autonomy to the operators to fix market-linked tariffs.
“Shipping Ministry has decided to come up with new tariff guidelines in response to many feedbacks which we received from the stakeholders, the new guidelines will provide level playing field across the port sector by allowing the port terminals to fix market-linked tariffs,” Shipping Minister G K Vasan told reporters here.
“We have taken the views of all the stakeholders and we are in the process of finalising the new guidelines and very soon we will announce them,” Vasan added.
The ministry had earlier proposed rejigging the Tariff Authority for Major Ports (TAMP).
TAMP was constituted in April, 1997, to provide for an independent authority — the Port Regulatory Authority — to regulate all tariffs, both vessel-related and cargo-related, and rates for the lease of properties in respect of major port trusts and the private operators located therein.
There are 12 major ports in the country — Mumbai, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust, Kolkata (with Haldia), Chennai, Visakhapatnam, Cochin, Paradip, New Mangalore, Marmagao, Ennore, Tuticorin and Kandla.
Shipping Ministry will award 30 port projects during the current financial year, which are likely to come up at an investment of Rs 25,000 crore.
“These projects will bring in an additional capacity of 288 million tonnes per annum at an estimated investment of Rs 24,633 crore,” Vasan said.
The government last year (2012-13) awarded 32 projects which will add a capacity of about 137 million tonnes per annum at an estimated investment of Rs 6,765 crore.
Meanwhile, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust today signed an agreement with Dubai-based DP World for development of a container terminal in Navi Mumbai.
The project would be executed on DBFOT (Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer) basis.
The concession document was exchanged between Shipping Minister G K Vasan and Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Chairman of DP World.
JNPT currently handles 44 per cent of the country’s container cargo.