News Excerpt:
With the aim of increasing the share of public-private partnership (PPP) in ports, the Centre will look to monetise assets worth Rs 10,000 crore in 2024-25 (FY25), according to multiple sources familiar with the developments.
More about News:
- The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has submitted a monetisation pipeline of Rs 10,000 crore, consisting of five to seven projects, to NITI Aayog.
- The Centre is looking to increase the share of public-private partnership (PPP) at government-owned ports to 80 percent by the end of the decade.
Focus on Pending Mega Projects:
- The newly identified projects make up only a small portion of the shipping ministry's FY25 pipeline, with a focus on pending mega projects.
- Among the pending mega projects is the Rs 7,055 crore container terminal at VO Chidambaranar Port Authority in Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu, which has been in the pipeline since 2023.
- The project aims to capitalize on newfound investor interest in the region.
- The region is set to get mega investments such as the Rs 16,000 crore electric vehicle manufacturing unit by Vietnamese major VinFast, the Indian Space Research Organisation’s second spaceport in Tamil Nadu’s Kulasekarapattinam, and Singapore’s Sembcorp’s Rs 36,238 crore investment in renewable energy.
Other key Projects:
- The pipeline also includes the multipurpose cargo berth at Deendayal Port Authority's satellite terminal at Tuna Tekra, Gujarat, which is undergoing restructuring due to minimal interest from the industry.
- The new projects comprise two terminals at Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port, Kolkata, and one project at Kandla Port.
Challenges and Future Targets for Port Monetisation
- According to sector experts, port monetisation will become trickier as most of the unexploited and revenue-generating terminals have already been bid out, and competing terminals at the same ports will attract lower interest.
- The shipping ministry has outperformed its monetisation targets, which were set at Rs 12,000 crore under the national monetisation pipeline.
- To date, 81 projects worth Rs 42,400 crore have been identified and proposed to be awarded in PPP mode by the shipping ministry.
