It was reported that the MSC Taerim, a container ship operated by Geneva-based Mediterranean Shipping Company S.A., the world's largest container shipping line by capacity, had docked at the Dakshin Bharat Gateway Terminal Pvt Ltd on Wednesday, marking the first direct call on a mainline to Europe from the V O Chidambaranar Port in two decades. The container ship, which has a capacity to load 1,890 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), arrived from Chittagong, Bangladesh, and was scheduled to sail to European ports including Sines in Portugal, Valencia in Spain and Bejaia in Algeria.

A shipping industry source said it was an ad hoc call from the Taerim and that MSC had to assess the feasibility of setting up a regular direct mainline service to Europe from the Dakshin Bharat Gateway Terminal. It was noted that MSC was awaiting security clearance from the Union government to acquire a 49 per cent stake in the terminal, following a global deal in March 2022 to buy Bollore Africa Logistics for €5.7 billion.

Bollore Africa Logistics has a 49 percent stake in the Dakshin Bharat Gateway Terminal, one of two container terminals operating under the state-owned V O Chidambaranar Port Authority. The majority stake of 51 percent in the terminal is held by India Ports and Logistics Pvt Ltd, which itself is 51 percent owned by Star Ports Ltd, a unit of Mumbai-listed Starlog Enterprises Ltd. Bollore Africa Logistics, recognised as Africa's largest transport and logistics operator, holds the remaining stake.

It was mentioned that MSC manages about 44 per cent of the volumes handled at the Dakshin Bharat Gateway Terminal, which primarily feeds the transshipment hub at Colombo Port. The terminal has a water depth of 14.2 metres and a capacity to load 720,000 TEUs annually, and currently handles about 55,000 TEUs per month. While the deal to acquire a 49 per cent stake in DBGT could only be finalised after security clearance from the Union government was received, officials at the V O C Port Authority said that MSC was bringing a lot of vessels to the terminal, which was helping to boost volumes.

A port official noted that MSC was ultimately the owner of the terminal, with only the labelling pending, and noted that the security clearance would come in due time. The shipping industry source also said that MSC was looking to acquire a rail-linked inland container depot (ICD) near V O C Port to facilitate movement of containers discharged at DBGT over long distances. The source added that MSC had a significant market share in Thoothukudi and was looking to expand this share by using the DBGT.