Singapore — India's Essar Vizag Terminal said Thursday that it has started operating its expanded 24 million mt/year mechanized iron ore handling complex at Vizag Port in Andhra Pradesh.
Work on nearly doubling the complex's former handling capacity of 12.5 million mt/year was completed on May 31.
"With its state-of-the-art cargo handling equipment, the iron ore handling complex will have the fastest vessel turnaround time for iron ore among Indian ports," Essar Vizag said.
"The iron ore handling complex can now berth Super Capesize vessels up to 200,000 dwt, with a depth of 20 meters, on the outer harbor of Vizag port," it said.
"The project will help exporters on the east coast benefit from shorter turnaround times and reduced freight costs," Essar Ports' managing director Rajiv Agarwal said. Essar Ports operates the port.
The complex is an all-weather, deep draft facility equipped to serve customers in Southeast Asia, China, Japan and South Korea.
It has a dedicated railway for cargo via Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Jharkhand. A 9.5-km long conveyer connects the stockyard to the port.
The complex can receive up to 16 million mt/year of iron ore via railway rakes, which are wagons that transport raw materials such as coal and iron ore to industrial plants.
