Visakhapatnam: Essar Vizag Terminal Ltd (EVTL) will be shut down for a week from December 13 to 19 ahead of the installation and commissioning of an 8,000 TPH (tonnes per hour) ship loader that forms part of the company's Rs 830 crore expansion plan to upgrade the iron ore handling capacity of the terminal (outer harbour) from 12.5 MTPA to 23 MTPA.
During the shutdown, other cargo handling equipment including a new reclaimer and a mechanical conveyor system will also be commissioned. Following these developments, EVTL expects to achieve a cargo handling capacity of 1,20,000 TPD (tonnes per day) which will translate to shorter turnaround times and competitive freight costs for exporters on the east coast. Ch. Satyanand, CEO, EVTL, said the shutdown is a planned move intended to be undertaken without disrupting exporters’ shipments. He said, “Given that we are replacing a 41-year old ship loader with this new one, the short turnaround time is quite remarkable.”
Essar Vizag Terminals Limited (EVTL) took over the Vizag Port expansion project in May 2015 on a design-build-finance-operate-transfer (DBFOT) basis for a period of 30 years. Since then, the company has ramped up the iron ore loading capacity of the terminal from 25,000 TPD (tonnes per day) to 70,000 TPD. With the completion of the upgradation-cum-modernisation project, not only will the loading capacity increase to 1,20,000 TPD, but the facility will also be able to berth vessels up to 2,00,000 DWT, with a depth of 18 metres, on the outer harbour.
