The largest private port operator in India, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd. (APSEZ), is set to be awarded a five-year operation and maintenance (O&M) contract to handle containers from five berths at Port Authority Syama Prasad Mookerjee (formerly Kolkata Port Trust)'s Netaji Subhas Dock.

The east coast port, one of the 12 ports owned by the Union government, is home to APSEZ, the sole bidder to submit a price offer for the contract. The bidder offered around Rs 2,100 per twenty feet equivalent unit (TEU), well within the ceiling set by the port authority to emerge as the successful bidder, multiple sources said. The agreement would also help the port operator increase its presence in the port. A ceiling rate was fixed by the Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port Authority.

The five-year contract will be awarded to the private company which has provided the lowest quotation for handling a loaded container under the ceiling of Rs 2,127 as per the bidding rules. The port authorities will pay this amount to the private operator in accordance with the terms of the O&M contract. The private operator will have to pay around Rs 5.69 billion (excluding GST) to build the necessary equipment, including 35 tractor trailers (TT), 3 rubber-tyred gantry cranes (RTG), 12 reach stackers (RST), 4 mobile harbor cranes (MHCs) to be available 24 hours a day, and two more MHCs to be kept in reserve.

For the handling of containers from motor yachts, the port authority will provide one non-MHC berth, in addition to four berths for MHC operations. In addition, the private operator may also have to operate vessels with fishing gear in MHC berths.

After the existing 10-year contract of Bharat Kolkata Container Terminals Pvt Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore's PSA International Pte Ltd, expires, APSEZ is expected to start operating the five berths in November. The new O&M operator will receive berths 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 from NSD for a period of five years, while Bharat Kolkata Container Terminals will continue to manage berths 3, 4, 5, 7 and 8. At the same time, a public-private partnership (PPP) tender has been floated by the Syama Port Authority Prasad Mookerjee to privatize NSD berths 7 and 8, as well as a backup area of 25 hectares, for a period of 30 years. The PPP model is expected to handle around 5 lakh TEU. APSEZ's second terminal at Syama Prasad Mookerjee port will be the subject of the O&M deal. In 2023, APSEZ secured a 30-year contract for mechanizing Berth No. 2 at Haldia Dock with an investment of Rs 2.98 billion for handling 3.744 million tonnes (mt) of dry bulk cargo.