Mundra Port to set up coal terminal at Vizag Port

The Adani Group-promoted Mundra Port & Special Economic Zone (MPSEZ) has said it will be developing a coal import terminal on the Visakhapatnam Port, which will be the third such facility by the company, reports PTI.

The proposed terminal, which will be built at a cost of over Rs 300 crore, marks the entry of MPSEZ on the Eastern Coast, the country's largest private multi-port operator said in a release in Ahmedabad today.

The terminal, the Berth East Quay-1, will be designed to handle imported coal volume of around 6.5 million tonne per annum and will be commissioned within two years, it said.

"The contract to set up the berth on the Visakhapatnam Port marks our entry on the East Coast. This is in line with our objective of having pan- India presence" said Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani said in the release.

The Visakhapatnam Port Trust selected MPSEZ after a competitive bidding and the contract is to develop a coal import terminal.

The Visakhapatnam Port is strategically located and the proposed terminal will feed industries and power plants in Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Chhattisgarh and eastern Maharashtra.

Mundra is the largest privately-owned and operated port in India, and is among the 10 largest ports in cargo handling volumes. It has handled around 40 million tonne of cargo in 2009-10 and aims to handle 50 MT in the current year.

MPSEZL, developing the country''s largest multi-product SEZ at Mundra, operates ports at Mundra and Dahej (both in Gujarat) and is developing one at Hazira and coal terminals at Mundra and Goa. It is also developing ports in Australia and Indonesia.