In the previous tendering process, APSEZ had bagged the project and a Letter of Intent to Award (LOIA) was handed over to the company. But at the Bengal Global Business Summit (BGBS) that was organised in November 2023, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has announced that a tender for the development of the port would soon be launched, which created a cloud of uncertainty over the allotment of the project.
JSW Infrastructure Joint Managing Director and CEO Arun Maheswari told PTI: “We will re-evaluate our strategies. Previously, when we bid, it was 2-3 years back.”
The port’s main features include a location five km from NH-116B and around 170 km from Kolkata. The port will have a deep draft of 12.1m, an 18-km channel, and tidal support of 3.9m, enabling large capesize vessels of one lakh DWT.