Chennai Port wants the government to revoke the cancellation of security clearance for Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) to participate in the port’s proposed Rs 3,686 crore container terminal project.
Chennai Port plans to build a container terminal than can load 4 million standard containers a year when fully operational. APSEZ and a consortium of Essar Ports and Vadinar Oil Terminal were the two bidders for the project.
The Port trust opened the bids of the consortium of Essar Ports, which quoted a revenue share of 5.25 percent. However, the price bid of APSEZ was not opened. The port, reportedly, decided to open the bid only after the central government revokes its move to cancel the security nod to APSEZ.
Price bids for port contracts are opened after pre-qualified bidders are granted security clearance by Union government ministries such as home, defence, external affairs as well as the Intelligence Bureau and the Cabinet Secretariat.
On 26 December, the portÂ’s board of trustees decided to set up a committee to negotiate a higher revenue share percentage with the Essar Group.
According to media reports, the port has now put on hold the boardÂ’s decision because APSEZ, IndiaÂ’s biggest private port operator, had submitted a representation to the port seeking a review of the governmentÂ’s decision to deny security clearance to the firm.
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