Media reports indicate that the shipping ministry’s move to deregulate tariff at the existing container terminals at major ports may instill confidence in private sector players to invest in port projects.
According to the tariff regime introduced in 2005, the Tariff Authority for Major Ports (TAMP) decides the rate that can be charged by the existing terminals at major ports.
However, industry players complained that the tariff fixed by the TAMP was not flexible and it does not incentivise improvement in efficiency. It may be recalled that the existing operators had approached courts for a revision in the rates in some cases.
Following this, the ministry is working on a policy to deregulate tariffs at the existing terminals of the major ports. The ministry is expected to unveil a new policy to de-regulate the tariff fixed at major ports in the country and allow operators to fix market-linked tariff at the ports. The industry has been demanding this step for a long time.
Earlier, the shipping ministry had announced a partial deregulation of the tariff regime, where it allowed terminal operators to fix market-linked rates for projects which were announced after April 1. However, the existing terminal operators were excluded from this deregulation.
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