Mangaluru: Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of mechanization and industrialization projects worth around Rs 3800 crores here on Friday. The PM inaugurated the project worth over Rs 280 crore for mechanization of Berth No.14 for handling containers and other cargo, undertaken by the New Mangalore Port Authority. The mechanized terminal will increase efficiency and reduce the turnaround time, pre-berthing delay, and dwell time in the Port by around 35 percent, thus giving a boost to the business environment. Phase I of the project has been successfully completed, thereby adding over 4.2 MTPA to the handling capacity, which would further increase to over 6 MTPA by 2025.
The PM also laid the foundation stone of five projects worth around Rs 1000 crore, undertaken by the Port. The integrated LPG and Bulk Liquid POL Facility, equipped with a state-of-the-art cryogenic LPG storage tank terminal, will be capable of unloading full load VLGC (very large gas carriers) of 45,000 tonnes in a highly efficient manner. The facility will bolster Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana in the region while reinforcing the port’s status as one of the top LPG importing ports in the country. Modi laid the foundation stone of projects for the construction of storage tanks and edible oil refinery, construction of bitumen storage and allied facilities, and construction of bitumen and edible oil storage and allied facilities. These projects will improve the turnaround time of bitumen and edible oil vessels and reduce the overall freight cost for trade.
