Indian Minister of State for Shipping, Mansukh Mandaviya laid the foundation stone for development of an additional Liquid Cargo Jetty at Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) in Mumbai.
According to a government announcement, the facility will be built at a cost of over INR 309 crore (USD 43 million), the project will cater to the increased demand for handling liquid cargo like edible oil, LPG, molasses and other chemicals.
Mandaviya said, “The Prime Minister Narendra Modi has laid focus on port-led development. Keeping this in view, India’s ports are being developed and modernized in line with global best practices.”
“There is an increased domestic and industrial demand for liquid commodities like LPG etc in the country, with PM’s plans to reach gas stoves to every home. The present liquid cargo capacity of JNPT is around 6.5 Million Tonnes Per Annum (MTPA). The new terminal for which foundation is being laid today, will increase this capacity by 4.5 MTPA. This will help to better fulfill national requirements and be good for the port too ”, said the Minister.
Earlier, the Minister attended meetings with CEOs of all Terminal Operators, port users, service providers and JNPT officers. This was Mandaviya’s first visit to JNPT, India’s number one container port, after taking over charge of the Shipping Ministry.
The main goal of the visit was to interact with various stakeholders in order to gain a comprehensive overview on the overall port operations, recent developments and the strategic roadmap ahead for JNPT to become amongst the best ports globally.
After the foundation stone laying ceremony, the Minister visited the fourth container terminal (BMCTPL) and JNPT SEZ Site. Chairman, JNPT, Sanjay Sethi was also present on the occasion.