Mega Alumina Handling Facility Coming Up in VPT
Vizag Multipurpose Terminal Pvt Ltd (VMTPL), a joint venture between India Potash Ltd and JM Baxi Ports and Logistics, has signed a strategic agreement with Aditya Birla Group’s flagship metals company Hindalco Industries Ltd for the project.
Visakhapatnam: India’s first fully-automated, sustainable alumina handling facility is coming up at the EQ-07 berth of Visakhapatnam Port. The joint venture project is likely to be completed next year.
Vizag Multipurpose Terminal Pvt Ltd (VMTPL), a joint venture between India Potash Ltd and JM Baxi Ports and Logistics, has signed a strategic agreement with Aditya Birla Group’s flagship metals company Hindalco Industries Ltd for the project.
The proposed new facility will not only eliminate the need for manual cargo handling but also enable a shift from truck-based transport to railway rakes for moving alumina from Hindalco’s Alumina refinery in Odisha to the port, enhancing sustainability and operational efficiency.
With a handling capacity of 1 million tonnes per annum of alumina, the facility is designed for full mechanisation across unloading, storage, and ship-loading.
The project aims to reduce 7,350 MTCO₂e in greenhouse gas emissions annually.
CEO of Vizag Multipurpose Terminal Pvt Ltd Manpreet Jolly said the project is estimated to cost around `575 crore and would export alumina and import fertilizers.
"We are not only enhancing the safety and efficiency of alumina movement but also significantly reducing our environmental footprint,” Jolly said.
Hindalco is the world’s largest aluminium company by revenue.
