THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will inaugurate the construction of the second phase of development works at the Vizhinjam International Port on January 24 at 4 pm. Port Minister V. N. Vasavan will preside over the function.
The event will also mark the launch of export-import cargo services at the port, enabling full-scale trade operations, and the opening of the newly constructed port road connecting Vizhinjam to the National Highway bypass.
The second phase is being taken up with an investment of Rs 10,000 crore by Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd. Once completed, the expansion is expected to raise the port’s annual capacity from 1.5 million TEUs to 5 million TEUs. As part of the works, the berth length will be extended from 800 metres to 2,000 metres and the breakwater will be expanded from 3 km to 4 km. The phase also includes the construction of a railway yard, a multipurpose berth, a liquid terminal and a tank farm.
Railway connectivity to the port will be developed through a 10.7 km track, including a 9.2-metre tunnel, for which land acquisition is currently under way. Road connectivity to the national highway has already been approved, with plans for a cloverleaf interchange to support large-scale commercial activity.
Vizhinjam has recently been granted Inland Container Port/Depot status, joining ports in Gujarat and Kolkata. This is expected to support new tourism-related facilities in coordination with the Tourism Department. To handle cruise ships, around 50 hectares of land will be acquired for yard development, customs and security infrastructure, while dredging will be carried out directly from the sea.
Under the revised contract, the second, third and fourth phases of the project are to be completed by 2028, advancing the timeline significantly from the original 2045 target.
The port completed one year of commercial operations on December 3. Against a target of one million containers, Vizhinjam handled more than 1.325 million containers during the period. It became the first port in India to berth over 40 ultra-large container vessels of 399 metres in length. More than 155 ships longer than 300 metres and 45 vessels with drafts exceeding 16 metres also docked at the port. The government earned around Rs 100 crore in tax revenue from port operations.
Vizhinjam has also drawn global attention by attracting vessels that had never docked in Asia before, including some of the world’s largest container ships such as MSC Turkiye, MSC Irena and MSC Verona.