News Brief
Tajpur Port Development LOI Issued, CM Mamata Banerjee Thanks Adani Group For Taking Up The Project
Tajpur Port LOA award event
The West Bengal government on Wednesday awarded the Letter of Intent (LoI) to Adani Ports and Special Economic Zones (APSEZ) for the development of Tajpur port.
The letter was handed over by state industry minister Shashi Panja to Karan Adani, CEO of the company, in the presence of state chief minister Mamata Banerjee, at an event held at Eco Park in Rajarhat.
Mamata thanked the Adani group for taking up the Tajpur port development project, expressing hope that the infrastructure project would usher in an industrial resurgence in Bengal.
The issuance of LoA was a follow up to the decision taken by the state cabinet to award the Rs 15,000 crore port development project to Adani Group.
The project will entail an investment of ₹25,000 crore and is expected to create around one lakh direct and indirect jobs.
In March this year, APSEZ emerged as the highest bidder in a public tender floated by West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation ( WBIDC) for the greenfield development of Tajpur port. Sajjan Jindal-led JSW Group also participated in the bid.
While JSW Infrastructure Ltd reportedly offered to pay 0.23 per cent of the gross revenue realised from the port, APSEZ offered to pay a modestly higher amount — 0.25 per cent of the gross revenue — to the government.
In October 2021, the West Bengal government invited bids for developing a greenfield, private deep sea port at Tajpur in East Midnapore district of the state on design-build-finance-operate-and-transfer basis.
About Tajpur Port
The port is proposed to be developed on a straight beach front and will be located located very close to mineral-rich belts of West Bengal, Jharkhand and Odisha. The identified site is located 180 km from Kolkata and 10 km from Digha.
After a tepid response during a previous round of bid, the state government offered ''better'' conditions such as 1000 acres of encumbrance-free land to attract investors.
The state government is also proposing to invest Rs.4,200 crore on this project.
In December 2020, the West Bengal Maritime Board called for letters of intent from firms interested in developing the proposed port but the response was lukewarm.
Previously, the state government had proposed that the port be built on reclaimed land as it is against forcible land acquisition for industry. ''Now, the state government is offering 1000 acres of encumbrance-free land. The government is also flexible on the quantum of land to be reclaimed,'' the official said. The reclamation has to be done by the port developer.
A land swap deal between the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC) and the West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company (WBSEDCL) also significantly brightened the prospects for the proposed port. 1000 acres at Dadan Patra Bar near Tajpur was earmarked for solar project under WBSEDCL will be swapped with land earmarked for building industrial parks by WBIDC.
Several port developers, who had shown initial interest in the Tajpur project, later expressed certain reservations, compelling the government to invite fresh bids offering relaxed norms. Besides presenting a concession period of 99 years, the state government is freeing the prospective investor from the cost of connectivity infrastructure like roads and railways which will help it reduce capex.
Tajpur will be the second port project that the Adani Group is set to manage in Bengal. It recently took up modernisation and operation of a berth in Haldia.
Also Read: Explained: Significance Of Tajpur Port For West Bengal And Eastern Coast
