Mumbai Port sets new record in handling automobile exports

Mumbai Port has set a new record of handling cars with shipment of 6,316 cars on a single ship earlier this month, achieving a quantum jump over the previous record shipment of 5,376 cars.

The ship MV Hoegh St Petersberg, berthed on the port's new berth OCT- 2 on 6 August 2016 sailed off on 9 August 2016 with 6,316 cars, which included 3,115 cars of General Motors and 3,093 cars of Volkswagen and exported mostly to Mexico.

Mumbai Port has been focusing on the export and handling of cars and has emerged as number one port on the West Coast of India growing at about 25 per cent for last few years, a shipping ministry release stated.

Mumbai Port Trust has constantly been improving facilities at the port thereby helping to reducing the cost of handling cargoes and consistently contributing to the 'Make in India' campaign by facilitating the export of made-in-India cars, it added.

The ministry expects major savings in logistic costs with the augmentation of the Sagarmala programme, which involves increased use of inland waterways and sea lanes for cargo movement.

Augmenting operational efficiency of ports and optimising logistics evacuation will also help boost Indian trade and help seize the big opportunity of growth in Indian cargo traffic at ports, which is estimated to increase to 2.5 billion tonnes per annum by 2025, says a report prepared under the Sagarmala port-led development programme of shipping ministry.

The origin-destination study on cargo traffic projections and logistics bottlenecks emphasis on the need for creation of efficient infrastructure at requisite demand and logistic chain centres.

Currently 95 per cent of India's trade by value and 70 per cent by volume take place through maritime transport. Globally, maritime nations such as China, South Korea and Japan have effectively used their coastline for 'port-led development'. It is therefore essential for India to optimise logistics cost and identify capacity additions required at different ports to prepare for future traffic flow.

Focusing on the total demand and supply situation of major export-import flow of key commodities currently being handled by ports, the report suggests optimising logistics cost for existing and future cargo capacities and capacity additions or reconfigurations at various ports to prepare for future traffic flow, including new ports development.

The study estimates the potential to save around Rs35,000-40,000 crore per annum by optimising logistics flows for key commodities by 2025. Some of the key drivers identified for this are promoting coastal shipping of bulk commodities like coal, setting-up coastal clusters for bulk commodities like cement and steel and providing last-mile connectivity of ports with National Highways and Railway network.

The report has identified establishment of new transshipment ports, creating dedicated coastal berth ports for coastal shipping, setting up of storage capacities at origin-destination ports to shorten turnaround time and developing adequate ship-repair facilities in the maritime states as some of the key enablers for unlocking the opportunity under Sagarmala.

Sagarmal aims at capturing the overall opportunity to save on logistic costs, make Indian goods more competitive in the global markets by changing the way logistics evacuation happens in India, boost overall economic development through ports and empower coastal communities.