THOOTHUKUDI : The Outer Harbour Project of VOC port — to transform the port into a container transhipment hub — estimated at a cost of Rs 7,055 crore, is actively being considered by the state government, said VOC Port Chairman (in charge) Bhimal Kumar Jha during the 77th Independence Day celebrations at the port Authority campus.

After hoisting the national flag, Bimal Kumar Jha stated that berth number 9 at the port will soon be converted into a container terminal with the capacity to handle six lakh twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of containers and that the north cargo berth-III will be fully mechanised and dredged to a draft of 14.20 metres for handling bulk cargo. Bids have been invited for deploying four numbers of 120-tonne capacity harbour mobile cranes, he added.

Jha said the Outer Harbour Project, with a combined capacity to handle four million TEUs of containers, pegged at a cost of Rs 7,055 crore, is under active consideration by the state government. “The project holds the potential to transform the VOC Port into a transhipment hub. The 5 MW solar power plant and the 2 MW wind farm are nearing completion. When these projects are complete, VOC Port would become self-reliant in terms of both power production and consumption”, he said.

VOC Port has been identified by the Government of India for the development of offshore wind power, a green hydrogen hub for production, storage, bunkering, and exports, he informed