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With Marine Products Exports Development Authority (MPEDA) and Seafood Exporters Association of India (SEAI) joining hands to improve seafood exports, Visakhapatnam, the largest exporting centre will not only retain its leading port status but also stands to gain a lot by increasing the volume.
After retaining its top slot for the past several years with the export turnover crossing Rs.7,000 crore since 2015, Visakhapatnam is projected to cross another milestone by exporting seafood mainly frozen shrimp and tuna to the tune of Rs.10,000 crore in the next couple of years.
“Vizag is a leading seafood exporting centre and with efforts on to introduce airlifting facility to Japan, the United States and Europe, it will further get shot in the arm. The facilities available at the Visakhapatnam Port are world-class,” SEAI Secretary General Elias Sait said. Visakhapatnam Port has created state of the art facilities by developing Visakha Container Terminal Private Ltd (VCTPL) under BOT mode. It was built by J.M. Baxi & Group and Dubai Ports World 13 years ago. Following its success, it is investing Rs.633 crore on extension of the terminal. “We have 220 reefer plug points and are enhancing it with 24×7 temperature monitoring and reporting, adequate power back-up as seafood being perishable item and a dedicated reefer yard and lane for reefer traffic,” VCTPL COO Sushil Mulchandani said.
At present, reefer containers are accepted two hours before closing vessel operations. Transparency is ensured as tariffs recommended by Tariff Authority for Major Ports (TAMP) are implemented. Since its inception 13 years ago, VCTPL has been showing consistent growth in volume of reefer containers with a 14 per cent average year-on-year. The hinterland which is metal and mineral based has seen seafood exports stand out from rest of all other commodities. This perishable cargo has been the centre of attraction for all shipping majors and other service providers. A senior VPT official said now their thrust was to promote seafood as an all-season product for consumption in Japan, the European Union and the United States.
The port provides global connectivity through unparalleled and dedicated mainline services with a host of shipping lines to cater to the requirement.
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