Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India], January 2 (ANI): Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) handled 35.65 million tonnes of cargo with a strong 42 per cent year-on-year (YoY) increase in December 2023.
Dry bulk cargo handling was up 63 per cent while handling of containers increased by over 28 per cent on a yearly basis last month, the company said in a release.
For the quarter that ended in December, Adani Ports handled around 109 million tonne of overall cargo, with around 106 million tonne contributed by its domestic ports, the release added.
In the initial nine months of 2023-24 (April-December), Adani Ports managed around 311 million tonne of total cargo, which is a healthy 23 per cent yearly growth.
“APSEZ crossed the 300 MMT (million tonne) cargo mark in just 266 days versus its previous best of 329 days in the previous financial year. This milestone only proves that our strategy of driving operational efficiencies to achieve industry-leading growth is yielding the desired results,” said Karan Adani, CEO and Whole Time Director, Adani Ports.
“We are now targeting over 400 MMT of cargo volumes in FY24, surpassing the upper end of the guidance range (370-390 MMT) provided at the start of the current financial year,” said Karan Adani.
Other ports, both on the east and west coastline, recorded key milestones during first nine months of 2023-24. The second largest port in the Adani portfolio, Krishnapatnam, berthed its largest-ever vessel. A similar feat was recorded by the Gangavaram Port, which berthed its deepest draft vessel of 18.12 meters in December.
The Dhamra Port handled the highest quantity of dry cargo (185,856 tonne), surpassing the previous record of 173,524 MT. The port also berthed its first LNG-powered cape-sized vessel, MV UBUNTU UNITY. It commissioned a 9.687 km railway doubling line in December, enhancing capacity to handle more rakes efficiently.
The Karaikal Port successfully docked a cape size vessel, with a draft of 13.6 meters, marking its largest parcel size ever. The port successfully handled the highest-ever monthly volume of soda ash (30,350 tonne) in December.
The Dahej Port handled its largest fertilizer vessel (68,763 tonnes), largest steel coil vessel (27,130 tonnes) and first-ever copper concentrate vessel (20,484 tonnes).
In a major announcement recently, Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani said that all its port operations will be carbon neutral by 2025. The target for net-zero port operations is 2040, the group chairman had said in a post on his X timeline. (ANI)
