India’s first and only exclusive port terminal for handling liquid and gaseous chemicals was inaugurated last month at Dahej near Bharuch in Gujarat. C S Patel, Managing Director of Gujarat Chemical Port Terminal Company (GCPTCL), spoke to indiamarkets about how the idea of creating such innovative infrastructure was conceived and what special facilities it offers to port users.

indiamarkets: How was the idea of an exclusive port conceptualised?
Patel: This exclusive port is the culmination of the joint efforts of the country's premier public sector organisations namely, Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Ltd. (IPCL), Gujarat State Fertilisers and Chemical Ltd. (GSFC), Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertiliser Company Ltd. (GNFC), Gujarat Alkalies and Chemicals Ltd. (GACL) and three other public sector enterprises of the Government of Gujarat. Initially, the project was conceived as captive facility for four of our promoters. Later on, as Gujarat was speedily developing as the chemical state of the country, we planned the port as a commercial venture.

indiamarkets: What is the total cost of the project?  When is it expected to cross the break-even point?
Patel: We have already invested Rs 850 crore till date. The revenue generation initially from the port traffic is expected to be around Rs 120 crore in the first year of operation and that could go up later to Rs 170 crore. We hope this project will cross the break-even point in the third year of the operation. This port, besides bringing in proximity to the Golden Corridor belt in Gujarat, would also cater to the needs of the secondary hinterland of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Punjab.

indiamarkets: Why should the chemical industry choose this port instead of major ports like Kandla and JNPT?
Patel: This port shall ease the congestion being faced currently at ports like Kandla and JNPT. It can handle large volumes of chemicals; the port with a single birth jetty 2.4 km. inside the sea has advantage of a deep draught, with initial capacity of 1.8 MMTPA. It can cater to ships ranging from 6,000 DWT to 40,000 DWT, which is being expanded to 60, 000, DWT having an overall length of 111 M to 215 M. GCPTCL shall handle liquid/gaseous chemicals including the hazardous ones, falling in “A”,”B” & General classes like propylene, propane, butadiene, naphtha, n-paraffin, benzene, mixed xylene, styrene, methanol, aniline, caustic lye, edible oil etc.

The port has excellent connectivity, with the nearest railway station barely 120 km from here at Vadodara, and the nearest airport at Bharuch which is just 50 km away;, the nearest railway station on a broad gauge line connecting Mumbai and Delhi, while the National Highway No. 8 passes through Bharuch, again leading to Mumbai in the south, Delhi in the north and to a vast hinterland. The Dahej and Bharuch narrow gauge railway line is being converted into broad guage.

The main advantage of the port is that it is built on open sea and has no channel restrictions. Neither is there any need of dredging. A fully loaded ship can remain berthed while unloading the cargo.

indiamarkets: What special facilities does the port provide for the cargo it is supposed to handle?
Patel: The Storage Terminal has the facility to initially store 3,11,300 cubic meters of liquid chemicals in tanks and spheres of various types and sizes for pressurised and non-pressurised products. More storage capacity can be added, for any specific requirement of the customer. Two special double-walled cryogenic storage tanks have been created for storage of propane and propylene. The storage facility is designed in such a way that the storage tanks are grouped as per the product classification and compatibility in diced enclosures and backed by PLC based Terminal Automation System.