Reports suggest that the union government is facing difficulty in attracting private investment in port projects.
It is learnt that projects in Visakhapatnam, Chennai and Tuticorin Port Trusts have not seen a single bid coming in from the private sector in the last two months.
The Visakhapatnam port wants to set up a general cargo berth WQ 7 &8 at an estimate cost of Rs 300-400 crore. With bids from private sector not forthcoming, the shipping ministry is now planning to invest in the project.
It may be noted that the project was put out for bid twice in the past one year and attracted no private participation.
The government is proposing to build a jetty from port trust funds and later on put up bids to find a private operator.
Public private partnership (PPP) is not gaining traction in the port sector in recent days. it is learnt that private sector has not been showing any interest in port projects over the past year.
The ministry will now seek approval of expenditure finance committee to go ahead with the Vizag project. It will also intimate the Planning Commission about converting the project into a public funded one, some reports suggest.
Similarly, Chennai port, which wants to set up a Ro-Ro terminal and a container freight station in Sri Perumbadur, failed to get response from private players.
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