Ahmedabad, Paradip, Sept. 9: Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd. (APSEZ) has secured a major expansion opportunity at Odisha’s Paradip Port, winning the Letter of Award (LoA) for developing and operating two dry bulk berths with a combined capacity of 18 million metric tonnes (MMT).
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The 30-year concession, awarded under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model, is expected to strengthen APSEZ’s presence along India’s eastern coastline and improve its access to key industrial and mineral-producing regions.
Two Berths to Get Mechanised Cargo Facilities
APSEZ, which emerged as the highest bidder, will develop the CQ-I and CQ-II berths at Paradip with modern mechanised cargo-handling systems, deep-draft berths and large storage facilities.
The additional capacity will take APSEZ’s overall portfolio to 671 million tonnes per annum (MMTPA), moving the company closer to its stated ambition of achieving 1 billion tonnes of cargo throughput by 2030.
Ashwani Gupta, Whole-time Director and CEO of APSEZ, said the Paradip project would deepen the company’s presence on the East Coast and provide greater access to one of the country’s key industrial and mineral-rich hinterlands.
Focus on Coal, Limestone and Dry Bulk Cargo
The new facilities are expected to cater to rising demand for handling coal, limestone and other dry bulk commodities in eastern and central India.
According to APSEZ, increasing cargo volumes and high utilisation levels at ports along the East Coast have created a need for additional handling capacity. Expansion in the steel sector and the government’s emphasis on domestic coal production are also expected to support demand for the new facilities.
Strategically located near major steel-producing clusters and mineral-rich hinterlands, Paradip is among India’s most important gateways for bulk cargo.
APSEZ Expands Nationwide Network
With the Paradip concession, APSEZ’s network will comprise 16 ports and terminals spread across India’s coastline.
The company said its port operations are backed by a wider logistics ecosystem, including a fleet of 136 vessels, 12 multimodal logistics parks, around 3.1 million square feet of warehousing space and more than 25,000 trucks operating on its logistics platform.
APSEZ currently handles about 27 per cent of India’s total port cargo volumes, according to the company.
The Paradip expansion is expected to further strengthen its integrated port-to-logistics network while supporting the movement of industrial commodities across eastern and central India.