PM Modi dedicates Vizhinjam international seaport to the nation

The Hindu

02-05-2025

Making the country explore new horizons in the global maritime trade, the newly built all-weather Vizhinjam International Seaport, was dedicated to the nation by Prime Minister Narendra Modi here on Friday (May 2, 3035). Positioned hardly 10 nautical miles from the international shipping routes connecting Europe, the Persian or Gulf and the Far East, the east-west shipping axis, the port is expected to significantly reduce the dependence of the country on other international ports for transshipment of cargo.
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Mr. Modi reached the port around 10.30 a.m. and was received by Pinarayi Vijayan, Chief Minister of Kerala, along with his Cabinet colleagues. The Prime Minister then boarded the ship MSC Celestinomaresca that berthed at the port. Later, he visited the key installations, including the Port Operations Building at the port, before the formal commissioning of the port. The event began with Mr. Vijayan paying homage to the those killed by terrorists in Kashmir.
The first semi-automated port in the country, the port is intended primarily to bring home the Indian cargo transshipment presently being undertaken at the foreign ports of Singapore, Colombo, Salalah and Dubai due to the absence of deep-water seaports in India near the international shipping route, which can cater to very large mother vessels up to 20,000 TEUs capacity. With the port being commissioned, the port could become a world-class transshipment hub for the Indian subcontinent to service the entire India.
With the site where the port is situated blessed with a natural water depth of 18 to 20 meters within a kilometer from the coast, suitable to accommodate very large mother vessels and minimal littoral drift which demands limited maintenance dredging during the years of operation along with reduced operational and maintenance costs, the port is expected to be a game-changer for Kerala as well as in South Asia's maritime trade.
The automation at Vizhinjam seaport positions it as one of the most technologically sophisticated transshipment ports globally, reducing vessel turnaround times and enhancing India's capacity to handle large container ships. The operations of all 24 yard cranes mounted at the port are fully automated, while the 8 ship-to-shore cranes are operated remotely, making the port the first semi-automated port in the country.
Even before the commissioning of the project, the port achieved many achievements during its trial run and subsequent five months of commercial operation. Ranked first among 15 ports in southeastern regions of India in terms of cargo handled in February and March 2025 (78,833 TEUs from 40 vessels in February and 1.08 lakhs TEUs from 51 vessels in March), the port has facilitated the berthing of a total of 285 ships to date, amazing the world by handling a whopping 5.93 lakhs TEUs of cargo in such a short span of time, around 110% utilisation of its installed capacity during this period.
In the meantime, giant mother ships such as MSC Turkiye, one of the largest container vessels in the world (24,346 TEUs) and MSC Claude Girardet with 24,116 TEUs called at the port, showcasing the engineering prowess of the port to the world. The rubble-mounded breakwater constructed, surviving the challenges put forth by a section of people, is an engineering marvel in the country. The construction of the port, which missed several deadlines, witnessed several obstacles in its way, including unforeseen events like the Ockhi cyclone, the 2018 flood, and the COVID-19 outbreak, along with the stiff protest raised by a section of fishermen backed by the church.
However, the 2,960-meter-long breakwater constructed in water at a depth of 18 to 20 meters with an overall height of 28 meters, which is equivalent to a 9-storey building, making it the deepest breakwater ever constructed in the country, is an engineering marvel. Now, with the Ministry of Environment and Forests granting environmental clearance for the second and third phases of development of the port, which will attract an investment of ₹9,560 crore by Adani Port as per the concession agreement, the port will enhance its current capacity from 1 million TEUs / annum to 3 million TEUs / annum by 2028. The first phase cost of the project is ₹8,867 crore. Of this, the State government's contribution is pegged at about ₹5,595 crore.
The commissioning of the port was also attended by Kerala Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, , Union Ministers of State George Kurien and Suresh Gopi, Gautam Adani, the Chairman of the Adani Group, and Karan Adani, the Managing Director of Adani Ports and SEZ Ltd, State ministers, and others.