Deep water container port planned
KARACHI, Nov 7: A signing ceremony will be held on Monday for a high profile concession agreement of Pakistan Deep Water Container Port (PDWCP) having a draft of 18 metres and could handle super post- Panamax container ships.
The ceremony is expected to take place in President House where Karachi Port Trust (KPT) and Hutchison Port Holdings (Hong Kong) are scheduled to enter into an agreement in the presence of the President General Pervez Musharraf and other high officials.
The KPT is setting up new harbour enclave called the Pakistan Deep Water Container Port, at the mouth of existing harbour and at east of Kemari Groyne. In the first phase a 1500 meter quay will is being built to establish the first deep water container terminal in the country and the region with a designed depth of 18 meters.
With 35 years experience in container terminal management, development and operating around 257 berths in 45 ports of 23 countries the Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) are the largest container operators and handle 59.1m TEUs world wide of which 13.1m is transhipment cargo.
The concession is being awarded on Built Operate and Transfer (BOT) basis for an initial lease of 25 years and could be extended for another 25 years on mutually agreed terms and conditions.
The PDWCT is a green field project in which the Karachi Port will undertake infrastructure development including building of three new breakwaters, extensive dredging work to the tune of 30 millions cubic meters and construction of 1500 meters quay wall at a depth of 18 meters.
The HPH would establish a high throughput container terminal including back-up area, provision of utilities, procurement of gantry cranes and other associated equipment along with computers and management systems. They would also develop container yard, storage and transfer areas, operational buildings, ship to shore gantry cranes, rubber gantry and mobile gantries.
The cost of first phase of the project is estimated to be $1 billion and being developed under public-private partnership. The KPT will invest $450 million for infrastructure development and HPH $557 million.
The salient feature of the concession is that it guarantees an income of $1.14 billion to KPT over the 25 years lease period irrespective of the quantum of through put container traffic. This means that KPTs investment would be paid back in a short period of six years..
This would also mean that KPT would receive $3.5 billion during the tenure of the entire concession period. As per plans the KPT is expected to hand over the first berth to HPH by 2009 and the subsequent berths at fixed intervals.
The new port will have both road and rail linkages with the hinterland which also includes a proposed Cargo Village in the western backwater of the Karachi Port
With a draft of 18 meters PDWCT would be capable to handle ships up to 450 meters length, 60 meters beam and 17 meters draft carrying 15,00 TEUs which is about the largest container vessel expected to operate in the region for a considerable time in future.
Besides, Federal Minister for Ports and Shipping Senator Babar Khan Ghauri, secretary ports and shipping Fazal-ur-Rehman chairman KPT Vice Admiral Ahmad Hayat will also attended the signing ceremony.
Deep water container port planned -DAWN - Business; November 08, 2007