More than 10 years after it was awarded, the much-delayed and incomplete Offshore Container Terminal (OCT) project at Mumbai Port will go for a rebidding.
The Rs 1,200 crore project, to be developed jointly by Gammon Infrastructure and Dragados SPL of Spain for a concession period of 30 years on Build-Operate-Transfer basis, is nowhere near completion. After Dragados withdrew from the project, Gammon Infra was developing the project on its own.
In 2006, Gammon India's joint venture, Indira Container Terminal Private Limited (ICT), had quoted the highest revenue sharing to win the container project. The bid was of 35.064% as against the second highest of 31.122% by Larsen & Toubro.
The initial plan was to handle 8,00,000 containers (Twenty-foot Equivalent Units or TEUs) annually starting from the end of 2010, under the first phase. Overall, the Special Purpose Vehicle had plans to handle 1 million TEUs.
The OCT is the first and single largest container terminal project in the Mumbai Port. There are two phases of the project. Phase 1 includes 700 metres quay, extendable to 1050 meters. The first phase was to have two berthing facilities along with cranes, and the extension project would add another berth at the OCT.
"Though the process to purchase and install 6 cranes from China was initiated, due to lack of funds it had to be dropped. Now, these 6 cranes to load and offload containers are not expected for another 2 to 3 years," said a source.
In June 2015, MbPT proposed an alternative use of the offshore terminal for Roll-On Roll-Off or RoRo operations after it wasn't possible to complete the first phase of the project. The facility was given to importers and exporters of automobiles and self-propelled equipment.
Plans are afoot to give a new lease of life to the project. "There is some struggle for a final solution for the project. There are plans to put the project under rebidding," sources told DNA Money.
The existing private player (Gammon Infrastructure-Dragados SPL) will have first right of refusal.
The bidding process is likely to get finalised by March 2017.
"Shortly, the plans will be announced to revive the project. MbPT is working on some plans to come up with a resolution," said a source close to the project.
As per the initial arrangement, Gammon Infrastructure was to invest Rs 862 crore for the new terminal and MbPT was to contribute Rs 366 crore. Since bagging the project, Gammon claims to have already infused around Rs 850 crore and more funds are needed to be invested into the project, despite the decline in overall container traffic.
In the last one-and-a-half decade, MbPT has witnessed a sharp dip in its container traffic. Back in 2000-01, the port handled 3,21,000 TEUs and in 2013-14, it came down to 40,000 TEUs only to increase the following year (2014-15) to 45,000 TEUs.
With MbPT's larger plan to partially revamp the portland and make it into a new tourist destination for Mumbaikars, the traffic may go down further. In the past, the decline has also been due to ships preferring the nearby ports, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust and Kandla Port.
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