THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The State government will sign the concession agreement for the Rs 7,525 crore Vizhinjam seaport project with Ahmedabad-based Adani Ports and SEZ on August 17, Chingam 1.
The construction of the port will begin on November 1, ‘Keralappiravi’ day, and, according to the Adani Ports executive director Karan Adani, it can be completed within the 48-month deadline.
“We see a huge potential for the port. The State government has given a projection of one lakh containers, we see almost 10 lakh containers,” Karan Adani, who is the son of group chairman Gautam Adani, said after a meeting with Chief Minister Oommen Chandy here on Monday.
Briefing on the meeting, the Ports Minister K Babu said that Adani Group will form a special purpose vehicle (SPV), which is to sign the concession agreement with government-run Vizhinjam International Seaport Ltd (VISL), in a week.
The special purpose vehicle will be headed by Santosh Mahapatra, a former IAS officer.
The concession period for the project is 40 years, and the PPP component is Rs 4,089 crore. The Adani Group has requested Rs 1,635 crore as grant, which the State government has accepted. The Vizhinjam port is to be designed to handle ships of 18,000 TEU (Twenty-foot equivalent unit, or a normal-sized cargo container).
Babu said that 90 per cent of the land acquisition is over, and the remaining ten per cent will be acquired soon. This land, which is around 32 acres, contain hotels and except one, all have agreed to hand over their land. The government expected the remaining hotel also to co-operate, failing which the government will take action as per existing laws. “The construction has to begin from that land,” Babu said.
Responding to a request by the Adani Group, the State government has also agreed to identify quarries for supply of granite for the construction.
