Port-related projects emerging big

Even as controversies continue to rock Emerging Kerala, the investors’ meet showcases a slew of port-related projects considered beneficial in the long-run.

Among the major proposals that have the potential to transform the state’s maritime sector are a shipping container manufacturing unit, offshore solar, wind and tidal power plants and a dry dock facility for houseboats and a passenger terminal in Alappuzha. Also included are the long-pending demands for the development of Kollam and Azheekal ports.

“The container manufacturing unit will be an innovative venture. There is a huge business opportunity for the movement of millions of tonnes of cargo across the oceans in containers. Last year, the total volume of cargo transported by ships in containers was 3.5 million twenty equivalent units(TEU). The  actual volume that needs to be moved was 5.3 million TEU. The staggering gap of 1.8 million TEU was owing to the shortage of containers,” said a senior official of the port division of KITCO, the public sector consultancy organisation which  conducted a study in this regard.  

“China is the leader in the manufacturing of containers. With the availability of cost-effective technology and labour, grabbing a sizable per cent of this huge opportunity is  possible for Kerala. The proposed unit will have an annual capacity of 5,000 TEUs,” the proposal stated. A dry docking and repair yard facility for houseboats is another novel project being presented at the investors’ meet. Out of the total 2,25,393 tourists who arrived in Alappuzha, 39,348 stayed in houseboats.

There are around 1,000 houseboats in Alappuzha.

“As per the Kerala Inland Vessel Rules 2010, the inspection of vessels in a dry dock or slipway every 24 months is mandatory. A minimum of 500 houseboats in Alappuzha should undergo inspection every year. But there are only five repair yards, with total docking capacity of 19 houseboats at a time. With the average docking time being 30 days, it is obvious that Alappuzha has an urgent need for houseboat dry docking facilities for repair and inspection,” the proposal says.

The department has further planned a project for solar, wind and tidal power plants  offshore. “The wind density of 200-250 Watts/m2 that is available in certain pockets along the eastern border of the state, makes  it a good site for the installation of wind turbine generators.

The scarcity of land and undulating topography are hurdles to major power projects in the sector. This drives the state to look forward to offshore power generation. The 590-km-long coastline with 40,000 sq kms of continental shelf makes the coast of Kerala an untapped offshore power resource,” the report says.