A Rs 2,500-crore investment is in the pipeline for Kolkata port (Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port) for the next four years, said SMP chairman Vinet Kumar.
A Rs 2,500-crore investment is in the pipeline for Kolkata port (Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port) for the next four years, said SMP chairman Vinet Kumar on Thursday.
Addressing the media on the sidelines of the two-day Maritime Public Private Partnership Conclave 2022, organised by SMP, Kolkata (erstwhile KoPT) and Ficci, Kumar said, “Of the Rs 2,500crore, three are ongoing projects with an investment of Rs 750 crore.”
He said, “It’s the silver jubilee of PPP (public-private partnership) in the port sector. Over Rs 20,000 crore have been invested under the PPP model. This accounts for around 30% of the port sector’s total capacity.” Around Rs 28,000 crore investment was coming SMP’s way in the next seven-eight years. The Rs 1,000crore project being awarded every year now would multiply four times in the next few years and thus, the focus should be on PPP players, explained Kumar.
Private partnership is important for ushering in marketability of the ports, he said. “Ports are slowly becoming landlord ports, playing the role of a regulator. The private parties will give us royalty and provide all the services.” In Kolkata, a concession of Rs 180 crore has been given to Khidirpur Dock (KPD), IWD transportation, he said. “Now, we will be able to handle containers in KPD. Another concession of Rs 300 crore is given to berth No 2 in Haldia Dock Complex (HDC). In the upcoming Netaji Subhash Dock (NSD), our concessions are ending in 2024,” he said adding that Kolkata port is one of the oldest to work with PPP (20 years) and it’s time to encourage more private players.
