Cochin Port, Shipyard & Vallarpadam ICTT

[sakrishna]

News dated:Feb 05, 2009

German cruise line to use Kochi as home port

V. Sajeev Kumar

Kochi, Feb. 4 Kochi Port’s efforts to emerge as a most preferred cruise destination in India has received a major boost with the decision taken by AIDA Cruises, Germany, to use Kochi as a turnaround port for the operations of its cruise liner AIDA Cara.
The German cruise company had informed the port about its plans to start operations from Kochi in October and this would involve turnaround of over 2,000 passengers and around 1,000 crew members, senior port officials said.
The company, according to officials, is also considering bringing in two more liners at Kochi for passenger turnaround – AIDA Bella (October 2009 and April 2010) and AIDA Aura (October 2010 and April 2011). It has been informed by the agents of the Line that based on the success of handling AIDA Cara, the port would be regularly used as a port of turnaround of this line. Earlier, this was being done at Colombo.
“This is a positive development and epitomises the faith that has been built among the cruise lines in the excellent cruise-friendly services being offered by the port,” the officials added.

Boost for tourism
Having received home port status, the port officials pointed out that Kerala’s tourism industry would get a quantum boost.
According to officials, the port had received 41 cruise vessels during 2007-08, the highest-ever in India so far. In the current financial year, a total of 38 cruise vessels are scheduled to call at Kochi, of which 24 have visited as on January 15. Besides, 19 cruise lines have confirmed their visits for 2009-10 and nine cruise lines for 2010-2011. More cruise liners would be included in this schedule in the months to come, the officials said.
Recognising the potential for tourism in Kerala, the port has taken a series of proactive initiatives to develop cruise shipping and these included concession in vessel related charges, walk in berthing priority, single window clearance for Customs, immigration etc. These measures have facilitated innovative cruise tourism products such as cruise-fly-cruise and fly-cruise-fly through Kochi.
On a cruise-fly-cruise scheme, the tourists on board tourist ships disembark at Kochi and take flight up to upcountry destinations and return and cruise further to next port. On a fly-cruise-fly product, tourists fly in from abroad and embark on cruise vessels at Kochi and cruise around and return to Kochi and their flight back home. These schemes have the potential to become more popular because the tourists need to spend minimal time for completion of various formalities

HINDU BUSINESSLINE

[AAJACOB]

Cochin Rocks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[KingNothing]

[AAJACOB]

Seems RVNL - which is implementing the rail link to Vallarpadam is striving hard to complete this ahead of schedule Cheers!!!!

[prakashjk]

Nice!I hope more cruise-liners too visit kochi.these tourists means more to our economy.

[AAJACOB]

Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...ow/4087802.cms

[AAJACOB]

Kochi: The Small Ships Division being set up at the Cochin Shipyard at an investment of Rs.98 crore is expected to be ready by the third quarter of this year. Once operational, it will have infrastructure facilities such as paint coating shop, fabrication of blocks, ancillary shops, pipe shop and steel preparation facilities, a shipyard spokesperson has said.

The turnover expected from the small ships division is Rs.400 crore when fully utilised.

[NEWKOCHI]

As part of promoting 'fisheries tourism', Kerala Government has initiated a proposal to set up a rs 350 crore 'Oceanarium' here, the
country's first, to enable a thrilling experience for people and researchers to study marine species, including large ones like whales and sharks, and habitat at a closer level.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...ow/4141476.cms

[AAJACOB]

Petronet to raise Rs 2,200 cr for captive port project at Kochi

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

To get Rs 1,400 cr from SBI, Canara Bank and Punjab National.

New Delhi, March 1 Petronet LNG Ltd (PLL) plans to mobilise Rs 2,200 crore from the domestic and external markets to part-finance its captive port with re-gassification facilities at Kochi.

The total project cost is about Rs 3,195 crore, of which PLL has already spent Rs 400 crore through internal accruals, Mr Amitava Sengupta, Director (Finance & Commercial), PLL, told Business Line.

The construction of the LNG terminal of 2.5 million tonnes a year (mtpa) is in progress and the entire project is expected to be completed by 2011 and commissioned in 2012.

Meanwhile, PLL has already firmed up the lenders who will part-finance the project, he said.

The Cabinet approval on February 23 for the project has given PLL a legal backing that would enable the company to achieve financial closure as well as raise finance, Mr Sengupta said. The Cabinet has allowed PLL to sign the concession agreement with the Kochi port authorities.

“We plan to execute the project with a debt-equity of 70:30. The company has finalised Rs 1,400 crore from lenders such as SBI, Canara Bank, and Punjab National Bank,” Mr Sengupta said.

Foreign funds

As regards accessing funds from the overseas market, he said that Petronet plans to raise close to $300 million.

“Of this, we have already tied up $100 million from a French lender,” he said. The borrowings will have a 13-year tenor with an average maturity period of 7.5-8 years. Subsequent to the Cabinet approval, PLL can now draw down funds from these lenders, said Mr Sengupta.

In fact, GDF International (GDFI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of French national gas company Gaz De France, holds 10 per cent stake in PLL. Apart from the French company, ONGC, GAIL (India), Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and the Asian Development Bank, a member of the World Bank Group, hold stake in the company. The public holding is 34.8 per cent.

On whether the gas source has been firmed up for the project, he said that the company is not restricting itself to one source (Exxon’s share from the Gorgon project), but is exploring other sources as well.

Source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/...0251610100.htm

[AAJACOB]

LNG - Pipeline works gonna complete in 3 years . Pipelines are being laid in two directions to Bangalore via Mangalore & to Kayamkulam .GAIL is also planning for a city gas supply facility. This would further position Cochin as the commerce & trade hub of kerala .http://www.manoramaonline.com/cgi-bi...4777&BV_ID=@@@

[sakrishna]

A mega project for Kochi port
Special Correspondent

— Photo: by special arrangement

UNIQUE CARGO: The reactor that will be installed at the BPCL-Kochi Refinery.
KOCHI: The Kochi port has ventured into the new and promising area of project cargo handling with it handling the biggest ever consignment weighing 725 tonnes.
The consignment is a reactor imported by BPCL-Kochi Refinery for its “vacuum gas oil hydro de-sulphurisation” unit. It is intended to ensure Euro III norms mandatory in the production of petroleum products at the refinery situated at Ambalamugal on the city’s outskirts.

Capacity augmentation
The 40-metre-long reactor, with a diameter of 5.3 metres, was built by China Forging Heavy Industries under the supervision of China Petroleum Technical Development Corporation Limited. BPCL-Kochi Refinery will augment its refining capacity by April 2010, which has important implications for the Kochi port too. It would mean more crude oil imports through the port.
The reactor was brought to the port in a general heavy lift carrier type vessel, m.v. Maria, which loaded the consignment from the Chinese port of Dalian. The vessel is equipped with three heavy lift cranes and is the first of its kind to call at the Kochi port. The vessel was berthed at Q3 berth at the Mattancherry wharf and the reactor has been unloaded directly on to a specialised barge for transportation through inland waterways up to Irumpanam and from there by road to the refinery at Ambalamugal.
The Mumbai-based firm MHTC Logistics has been awarded the work of transporting the reactor to the refinery.
Engineers India Ltd., New Delhi, specialising in refinery installations, is supervising the operation. The refinery would need to import 30 to 35 large units of heavy machinery for capacity augmentation. The Kochi port has promised to provide facilities for smooth unloading and transportation of such specialised and delicate project machinery. This new venture has put the Kochi port in the category of harbours specialised in handling such sensitive cargo.

THE HINDU

[AAJACOB]

NEW DELHI: Gas-hungry power companies in the south can hope for some fresh feeds from Petronet LNG—India’s largest liquefied natural gas (LNG)
importer—which has sealed a deal with US energy major ExxonMobil for an annual supply of 1.5 million tonne LNG for its upcoming Kochi terminal in Kerala.

“...an agreement has been reached on intent to supply LNG... (the two companies) would continue working on binding agreements to conclude the purchase and sale in June,” a joint statement released by the two companies said. The 20-year gas supply deal is estimated to be valued at around $6 billion at today’s global prices, according to energy analysts.

Supplies from Exxon’s Gorgon LNG terminal in Australia to Petronet’s 2.5-million-tonne Kochi plant will serve power companies like NTPC, which has been operating its large power plant at Kayamkulam in Kerala at sub-optimal levels for want of gas. Gas-based plants, which form nearly 10% of the total generation capacity, are forced to run at less than 60% of their capacity due to shortage. Incidentally, the deal comes amid crashing global LNG prices—gas is available in the spot markets at around $4 per unit (million British thermal units).

According to trade analysts, though the market is tilted in favour of buyers today given the economic recession, the scene may well be different in 2014. “Both the buyer and seller would have kept that in mind while negotiating the price,” one analyst who asked not to be named said. It is estimated that LNG projects with almost 75 million tonne of capacity have been put on hold after shrinking demand.

Though no price details on the LNG supplies are available—“the commercial details are confidential,” the statement said—it is expected to be benchmarked to the contracts signed with Japanese companies, a person in the know said. Indeed, Japan had bought gas from this field from Chevron, which owns a 50% stake, at a price of around $6 per unit.

“Price details cannot be disclosed..Petronet LNG looks forward to finalising the agreements and moving forward with the LNG infrastructure needed to supply natural gas to consumers in the Kerala region,” Petronet managing director P Dasgupta said.

LNG prices normally have a two part-structure, one of which is fixed while the variable is linked to crude prices. Petronet had struck a similar deal with Rasgas of Qatar for gas supplies to its Dahej terminal, which has now been expanded to a capacity of 10 million tonne.

As per the agreement, ExxonMobil’s subsidiaries Mobil Australia Resources and Mobil Exploration & Producing Australia will supply around 1.5 million tonne of LNG annually, with the potential for more supplies for 20 years.

The Gorgon field has estimated gas reserves of over 40 trillion cubic feet (tcf). The field is being developed by ExxonMobil, Chevron and Royal Dutch Shell. Royal Dutch Shell and ExxonMobil hold 25% each in the field. While Chevron has contracted most of its share to Japan, Royal Dutch Shell may ship its share to its LNG facilities in India or Nigeria, a person in the know said.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...ow/4501523.cms

[AAJACOB]

PORT PROFILE

Cochin is the fastest growing maritime gateway to peninsular India. An all-weather natural Port, it is located strategically close to the busiest international sea routes from the Gulf to Singapore and Europe to the Far East circuits. The port is spearheading fast-track maritime and industrial growth in the large geographical spread of it's economically vibrant hinterland. The logistically sensitive port is emerging as the most preferred investment destination for maritime commerce.



FUTURE

LNG Re-gasification Terminal


International Bunkering Terminal

Cochin Port is just 11 nautical miles away from the maritime highway connecting Gulf to the Far East and Australia. Taking advantage of this geo-strategic location of the port, development of an international bunkering terminal is on the anvil.

Port Based Special Economic Zone (SEZ) - Features The Government of India has notified Vallarpadam and Puthuvypeen areas within the port limits as two separate Port Based Special Economic Zones. Several Projects, including Free Trade Warehousing Zones, are expected to come up here.

http://www.ipa.nic.in/cochin_news.htm

I believe - Cochin Port comes first among other Indian Ports in terms of proximity with International Shipping route which makes it an ideal bunkering port also.

[sakrishna]

Does anyone have any information about the proposed port at Munambam?

[SajithVijayan]

Can we expect the similar "service" from trade unions in vallarpadam also? Its not at all a good sign.

[KMC]

Originally Posted by SajithVijayan

Can we expect the similar "service" from trade unions in vallarpadam also? Its not at all a good sign.

Its most common thing in kerala , we talk , talk , talk and keep talking , but no one dare to act .

Govt shud intervene and take strict action against those who spoil the show for their own hidden agendas... Its a sorry state Kerala>>>

[VinVin]

Originally Posted by KMC

Its most common thing in kerala , we talk , talk , talk and keep talking , but no one dare to act .

Govt shud intervene and take strict action against those who spoil the show for their own hidden agendas... Its a sorry state Kerala>>>

You are right KMC..govt should make a policy, with clear counter measures and emergency responses to such acts from our union workers. This militant unionism is a bane for the entire state.

[SajithVijayan]

Originally Posted by SeaQueen

which newspaper was that sajith?

It was Manorama. If i remember correctly it was around 2-3 months back.

[AAJACOB]

Originally Posted by SeaQueen

This is the best part of it all.

This would be longest railway bridge in india once commissioned.Delighted to see this 5km bridge once the container terminal is operational.

[SeaQueen]

A 2 month old video report on the activity and buzz w.r.t Vallarpadam.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XnER0rKyIE