On a day when Narendra Modi-led NDA leap-frogged to victory in Lok Sabha polls, a company promoted by a Gujarati businessman Gautam Adani, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ), has struck a Rs 5,500 crore deal to acquire 100 percent stake in Dhamra port, located in Orissa – election results 2014 have put the BJP firmly in the saddle to form the new govt at the Centre.
Gautam Adani-promoted APSEZ executed a definitive agreement with L&T Infrastructure Development Projects Limited and Tata Steel Limited to acquire 100 percent stake in Dhamra Port Company Limited (DPCL), stated the company here. DPCL was a 50:50 joint venture between L&T and Tata Steel.
“The Dhamra port acquisition now gives us an opportunity to replicate the development and phenomenal growth of the Mundra Port on the eastern coast of India and thereby continue to execute on our pan-India strategy,” said Gautam Adani, chairman of Adani Group.
“Nation building for us is ensuring we open up coastal entry and exit points that accelerate industrial developments over vast hinterlands. The Dhamra port precisely helps us execute in this direction,” he added.
The Dhamra port is a deep draft, all weather multi-user port that commenced opoerations in May 2011 and handled total cargo of 14.3 million tonnes in financial year 2013-14. The port has two fully mechanised existing berths, 63 kilometers of private rail line connecting the Bhadrak station to the main trunk line and has already achieved environmental clearance for the development of 12 additional berths.
“Following the acquisition, the second phase of development will be initiated within 90 days and completion targeted in 30 months. This continued expansion will allow the Dhamra port to exceed 100 million tonnes of cargo capacity by the year 2020….,” stated the company.
