This could strengthen APSEZ’s case while seeking a rollover from the Gujarat government on the concession period for the port when it ends in 2031 after a 30-year run.
The port, located in Gujarat’s Kutch district, currently has a design capacity and environmental and coastal regulation zone approval for handling 225 mt of cargo a year, including 9.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), a standard measure used for containers.
ET BureauMundra – India’s biggest commercial port as well as the country’s top container port by volumes handled – managed 179.6 mt of cargo, including 7.4 million TEUs, in fiscal 2024, accounting for more than a fourth of all cargo volumes and over a third of container cargo in India.
It is expected to cross the 200 mt mark in cargo handling in FY25, APSEZ said in its volume guidance for the fiscal year that began in April. This will make it the country’s first port to achieve this feat.
Globally, a capacity utilisation of 70% is considered the ideal level for ports/terminals to operate efficiently without facing congestion and productivity issues. “At 70% capacity utilisation, the terminal works at full efficiency. Above that, the efficiency drops, and delays start occurring,” said a port industry insider.With the port growing in double digits over the past few years, putting it on course to reach the full rated capacity soon, APSEZ had applied to the Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) attached to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change to raise the capacity by 289 mt to 514 mt as part of the expansion of the Waterfront Development Plan spread over 3,335 hectares at Mundra port. The capacity expansion will cater to multi-purpose, liquid, gas and cryogenic cargo.”The EAC, after examining the documents submitted by the project proponent (APSEZ) and detailed deliberations held on 15 May 2024, recommended the proposal for environment and CRZ clearance,” according to the minutes of the committee’s meeting seen by ET.
The EAC recommendation will have to be signed off by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, which is a mere formality.
APSEZ did not respond to ET’s request for comment till the time of going to the press Sunday.
Mundra’s expansion is critical for APSEZ’s aim to become the world’s biggest transport utility and port operator by 2030. Currently, it has a network of 15 ports/terminals in India’s coastline with a capacity to handle some 627 mt of cargo a year. It also runs the Haifa Port in Israel, a container terminal at the Dar es Salaam Port in Tanzania and is building a box terminal at the Colombo port.
