Tamil Nadu plans to go ahead with a plan to develop a greenfield port at Nagapattinam, adjacent to the existing minor port there, in a private-public-partnership mode.
The project will help development in the hinterland in the districts of Nagapattinam, Perambalur, Villupuram, Salem, Namakkal, Karur, Thanjavur, Thiruvarur and Erode.
Rich history
The existing Nagapattinam minor port, located at the mouth of the Kaduvaiyaru River, is a lighterage port handling general cargo, wheat and fertilisers.
However, a reduction in import of wheat and fertilisers due to the change in policy, the port’s activities have come to a standstill.
In fact, Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd exports diesel and naphtha from their Narimanam (Nagapattinam District) refinery through its captive open-sea jetty located within the port’s limits.
With Nagapattinam town situated around the minor port, expansion of the existing port became difficult. Thus, the need was felt to develop a new port for the region’s development, according to the State government.
Nagapattinam port has had a rich maritime history. It was the chief port under the control of Portuguese and later came under the control of the Dutch from 1660 to 1781. Later, when the British took control, the port used to attract passenger steamers and cargo vessels from Singapore and Malaysia.
Feasibility study
IIT Madras had prepared a techno-economic feasibility report to develop an all-weather, deep-water, direct berthing, greenfield port at Nagapattinam at an estimated cost of Rs 380 crore.
Last January, the State government approved the proposal forwarded by the Highways ad Minor Ports’ department to develop the greenfield port.
i-maritime Consultancy Pvt Ltd was engaged as consultant for the project. It recently submitted documents such as a notice inviting bids, bid documents containing qualification and financial criteria for bidders and the procedure to be adopted in selecting the successful bidder, along with a draft concession agreement, for further processing.
Meanwhile, based on a technical sub-committee headed by the Joint Secretary, Finance Department, to analyse the documents, the bidding process for the project will be initiated soon, the State government said in a policy note.